Tarlok Singh (athlete)
Indian long-distance runner
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tarlok Singh (1929 or 1930 - date of death unknown) was an Indian long-distance runner who won a gold medal in the 10000 meters and a bronze medal in the 5000 meters runs at the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games.[1] Subsequently, he was affected by tuberculosis because of malnutrition and succumbed to it without nearly receiving any medical treatment.
Singh was born in 1929 or 1930.[2] He was in the Indian Army, where he achieved Havildar rank.[3] He was a part of the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles infantry regiment and was promoted to naib subedar rank in 1966.[4]
Singh was coached by Indian athletics coach Ilyas Babar.[5] He was said to have started a medal rush and kicked off a "golden era" of men’s middle and long-distance running in India during the 1960s and 1970s.[6]
On 21 January 1962, Singh set a 10,000 metres personal best time of 30:01.6 to win an athletics meeting in Delhi.[7] At the 1962 Asian Games, Singh won a 10,000 m gold medal in a championship record time of 30:21.58 and won the 5000 m bronze medal in 14:31.4 minutes.[8] Singh, who ran with a beard, beat Japan's Teruo Funai by only two tenths of a second in the 10,000 m.[9]
Singh became the first 1962 recipient of the Arjuna Award, the second-highest sporting honour in India.[3][10]
