This was no unexpected feat for India’s 4X400 m relay team | Data

On Aug. 26, four Indian men shattered records by finishing 2nd in the 4X400 metres relay in the World Championships in Budapest. This was the first time an Asian team completed the race in under 3 minutes. The team broke the Indian national record of 180.25 seconds and the Asian record of 179.51 seconds. They also made up 0.82% of the 245 instances of teams completing the race in under 3 minutes. The U.S. has done it 82 times, followed by Jamaica and the U.K. Muhammed Anas Yahiya and Amoj Jacob were part of multiple record-breaking runs, showing this was a culmination of years of consistent work.

On August 26, four Indian men, running the 4X400 metres relay in the World Championships in Budapest, finished second in heat one (qualifying rounds) and got into the final round, turning the nation’s attention towards them. In an event usually dominated by the U.S., Jamaica, and the U.K., and where Indians or even Asians have rarely made a mark, the relay deservedly became the talk of the town.

Though the four athletes did not go on to win medals in the final round, their run shattered many records. Data also shows that this was not an ‘out of the blue’ run, but a culmination of years of consistent work with members of this quartet setting and breaking multiple domestic records.

During heat one in Budapest, the team comprising Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Amoj Jacob, Muhammed Ajmal Variyathodi, and Rajesh Ramesh broke the Indian national record by completing the race in 2 minutes 59.05 seconds (179.05 seconds) and finishing second behind the U.S.

Chart 1 | The chart shows all the 4X400 metres relay runs by Indians completed below 3 minutes and 15 seconds, in recognised international and domestic competitions.

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The 179.05 seconds run in heat one broke the previously held Indian national record of 180.25 seconds set by Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Amoj Jacob (part of the Budapest team), Noah Nirmal Tom, and Arokia Rajiv in Tokyo on August 6, 2021.

In the Budapest final, the runners completed the race in 179.92 seconds, the second fastest for India now. Also, notably, the heat one race was the first time that Indians managed to finish the relay run in under three minutes.