Pooja Singh (athlete)
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 21 February 2007 Haryana, India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | High jump | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Balwan Singh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal best | 1.89 m NU20R (2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Pooja Singh (born 21 February 2007) is an Indian athlete. She competes in the high jump event and is the current Asian champion, having won the gold medal at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships.[1]
Early life
Pooja hails from Bosti village, Fatehabad district in Haryana. Her father Hansraj is a construction worker.[2] Coach Balwan Singh Patra spotted Pooja while during a yoga session and was impressed with her yoga postures, charasana and dhanurasana (yoga forms) and recruited her and started training her as a high jumper.[3]
Career
Pooja started her jumps under coach Balwan Singh at a small facility at Para Sports Academy which had no landing mats. But soon she won the gold in the under 14 category with a jump of 1.41m.[4] Though an injury kept her out of action for about 15 months, she made a winning return at the 2022 Junior Nationals where she won the high jump gold with a National record of 1.76m. In the same year, later she claimed the gold in the 2022 Youth under 18 Youth National Championships.[4]
In April 2023, she won a gold at the 2023 Asian U18 Athletics Championships in Tashkent.[3] In June 2023, she won a silver medal at the 2023 20th Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Yecheon, South Korea.[5] In July 2023, she took part in the Asian Athletics Championships, Supachalasai National Stadium, Bangkok. She finished seventh with a jump of 1.75m. In August 2023, she also won a bronze at the Seventh Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad & Tobago.[6][7]
In August 2024, she finished second in the high jump event of the qualification round at the World Athletics Under 20 Championships at Lima. She jumped 1.83m which is an Indian National Under 20 record.[4] In December 2024, she jumped 1.85m in the under 18 Girls heptathlon event at the 39th National Junior Athletics Championship at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar.[8]
International competitions
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Representing India | |||||
| 2023 | Asian U18 Championships | Tashkent, Uzbekistan | 1st | High jump | 1.77 m |
| Asian U20 Championships | Yecheon, South Korea | 2nd | High jump | 1.82 m | |
| Asian Championships | Bangkok, Thailand | 7th | High jump | 1.75 m | |
| Asian Games | Hangzhou, China | 6th | High jump | 1.80 m | |
| 2025 | Asian Championships | Gumi, South Korea | 1st | High jump | 1.89 m |
Seasonal bests
| Year | Date | Location | Performance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 15 November | Guwahati, India | 1.76 m | |
| 2023 | 6 June | Yecheon, South Korea | 1.82 m | |
| 2024 | 9 December | Bhubaneshwar, India | 1.85 m | |
| 2025 | 30 May | Gumi, South Korea | 1.89 m | PB, NU20R |
References
- ^ "Pooja wins gold, becomes 2nd Indian woman high jumper to medal at Asian Athletics Championships". sportstar.thehindu.com. 30 May 2025. Retrieved 30 May 2025.
- ^ Selvaraj, Jonathan (13 June 2023). "Haryana mason's daughter, Pooja, takes flight in Indian athletics". sportstar.thehindu.com. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
- ^ a b "Spotted at yoga camp, teen high jumps to Asian Games". The Times of India. 21 September 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
- ^ a b c PTI (30 August 2024). "World Athletics U-20 Championships 2024: Pooja Singh breaks U-20 NR in high jump to qualify for final". Sportstar. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
- ^ PTI (30 August 2024). "Pooja Singh breaks U20 NR in high jump to qualify for final at World U20 C'ships". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
- ^ "Commonwealth Youth Games: India win a silver, two bronze on final day". Commonwealth Youth Games: India win a silver, two bronze on final day. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
- ^ Mangale, Kalyani (12 August 2023). "Asha wins silver at CW Youth Games". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
- ^ Das, Tanmay (9 December 2024). "Pooja jumps her personal best of 1.85 m in heptathlon high jump". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 6 April 2025.