Vithya Ramraj on newfound fame: 'I'm still far away from reaching world standards'

CHENNAI: With three medals and newfound recognition, Vithya Ramraj returned home from the Asian Games with plenty to celebrate. People at petrol bunks, airports and bus stands have started recognizing her, but it has left the 28-year old, who broke P T Usha’s 400 metre 42-year-old hurdles record, slightly surprised.“People are recognising me now and I’m happy athletics is growing. I’m also thinking about the recognition I am getting. Is it because of the relay medals or because I broke the record? Why have I become famous? That is one constant thing on my mind. I’m still far away from reaching world standards, and my coach was not happy with the timing.“Personally, I didn’t get the satisfaction even though people celebrated. I think of how Neeraj Chopra is celebrated, and if I reach his level, then more people will know me,” Vithya told TOI.What worked for Vithya in 400m hurdles was that she brought down her stride count from 17 to 16 between hurdles 5 and 6.“In the bend from the fifth to the sixth hurdle, I used to take 17 strides, but I have now reduced it to 16. We have been working on it since Nov last year. That helped me going into the home stretch.”Going into the Asian Games, Vithya did not dip below 56 seconds even once this season. While she bagged gold at the Federation Cup and Inter-state athletics meet, her coach Nehpal Singh, who has been a strong source of support, was not satisfied with the medals.“My coach told me, ‘Did I train you to run 56 seconds? What performance have you put in?’”What Vithya felt helped her in the run-up to the Asian Games was the training stints she had in Poland and the Czech Republic with Nehpal.“I used to sleep for 10 hours for three months during the stint abroad, but in India, I used to sleep only for 7-8 hours. In India, I cannot train at 10 am due to the climate, but the sleep cycle in Poland helped me. In India, I train from 5:30am to 8:30am,” she said.Stay updated with the latest Asian Games 2026 news, check the Asian Games medal tally and complete Asian Games schedule.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.