KOCHI: Avinash Sable gives the impression that he is competing with no one but himself. It was a case of another race and another national record re-written for the Armyman who is making it a routine to smash records. An astonishing stat about Sable is that it was for the sixth time that he was re-writing his own record, as he set another personal best in the 3000m steeplechase event at the Indian Grand Prix-2 held at Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
Interestingly, his timing of 8:16.21s is also now the best timing of 2022 as he has laid down the marker in what was only his first appearance since the Tokyo Olympics last year.
At the Games, Sable had set a time of 8:18:12s which was the national record at that time and there was a lot of curiosity on how the 27-year-old would fare on his return to the track.
In a field where he had no real competition, Sable showed that he is hungry as ever and looking to have a big season ahead. Haryana's Shankar Lal Swami came a distant second with a time of 8:36:37s, more than twenty seconds behind Sable.
"I'm preparing for the World Championship and there are some three to four months for that and things are going according to the target I've set for myself. It was the first competition of this season, and I feel there is still a lot to improve. My main target remains the World Championship, and after that, there is the Commonwealth and Asian Games. But the main focus is the World Championship and preparations are going on according to that," Sable said after his performance.
Sable had first made the national record his own back in 2018 when he broke a 37-year-old record held by Gopal Saini, and ever since then, the man from Beed has had a monopoly of sorts in the steeplechase discipline at the national level.
And he looks to be cut from a different cloth. The star athlete was down with Covid in the lead-up to the Olympics but had still managed to produce a stellar performance at the quadrennial event. Another setback that he experienced was the passing away of India's middle and long-distance coach Nikolai Snesarev months before the Games.
"Even after the Olympics was over, Sable never really stopped training. He has been as focussed as ever and such is his devotion to his craft that he never fully switches off," his coach Amrish Kumar told this daily.
But it is his ability to forget about everything when he begins a race is that has helped him stay motivated and outdo himself every time he steps on the track. "The thing about Avinash is that he is very clear-headed and grounded. Even if he has been smashing records, every time he is at a new meet, everything he achieved till then is forgotten and he starts on a clean slate. This is what keeps him hungry and focussed," added Amrish.
Sable had looked sharp during the race as he led from the start and won the race at a canter.
Ever since catching everyone's attention by setting a record at the Open National Athletics Championship in Bhubaneshwar, Sable has been an epitome of consistency as he is setting a new benched on the track.
"When you think of it, it is extraordinary for someone to continuously rewrite records. But as far as Avinash is concerned, it is just about looking to improve himself," added Amrish.
Sable's progression since rewriting the national record
8:29.88 -- September 2018 (Open Nationals)
8:28.94 -- March 2019 (Federation Cup)
8:25.23 -- October 2019 (Worlds, heat)
8:21.37 (Worlds, final)
8:20.20 -- March 2021 (Federation Cup)
8:18.12 -- July 2021 (Olympics)
8:16.21 -- March 2022 (Indian GP-2)