Jyothi Yarraji is the golden girl of Indian athletics. She is currently the fastest women’s 100m hurdler in India and made history at the Asian Athletics Championships by becoming the 1st Indian ever to win gold in the 100m hurdles event.
She clocked 13.09 seconds to win the 100m hurdles final race beating two Japanese sprinters Terada Asuka (13.13s) and Aoki Masumi (13.26s) who stood second and third respectively.
“I had prepared really well and felt it was my day but it was my bad luck with the rain pouring. I slipped a bit after the seventh hurdle and lost the rhythm so I couldn’t clock a great time. I expected a new personal best today. But I am happy that I won a medal and I am really pleased with my consistency,” Jyothi said after the race.
Overnight, she has become the talk of the country and was even congratulated by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy for her incredible achievement.
“My congratulations and best wishes to our very own Jyothi Yarraji from Vizag, on winning gold at the 25th Asian Athletics Championships held in Thailand,” Reddy tweeted.
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Making all of 🇮🇳 proud! 🥺
— RF Youth Sports (@RFYouthSports) July 13, 2023
Jyothi Yarraji grabs 🥇 in the 100m Hurdles event at the Asian Athletics Championships 2023 with a timing of 13.09s! 🙌👏@ril_foundation @afiindia | #RelianceFoundation #RFSports #AsianAthleticsChampionships #AAC2023Bangkok pic.twitter.com/BhiFnfH04y
But how did Yarraji take to the sport? TSN takes a look.
Jyothi Yarraji: Early life and humble beginnings
Yarraji, born on August 28, 1999, in Visakhapatnam (Vizag), Andhra Pradesh, comes from a humble background.
Her father, Suryanarayana, works as a private security guard, while her mother, Kumari, works as a part-time domestic help and cleaner at a city hospital.
Despite the financial constraints, Jyothi's talent in athletics was recognized during her time at Port High School Krishna in Vizag. Her physical education teacher identified her potential as a hurdler due to her height, and from then on, her athletic journey began.
Early Success: Yarraji first gained attention in 2015 when she clinched the gold medal at an Andhra Pradesh inter-district meet. Recognizing her potential, she moved to the SAI Centre in Hyderabad the following year to train under the guidance of coach N Ramesh, an Olympian and Dronacharya awardee.
Although she didn't immediately capture the world's attention, Jyothi consistently won medals in junior and senior national meets, showcasing her growing potential.
Journey of Resilience: After two fruitful years at the Hyderabad SAI Centre, Jyothi received an opportunity to join the Centre of Excellence in Guntur.
Unfortunately, the facility abruptly closed its doors, posing a setback in her training journey. Undeterred, Jyothi relocated to the Odisha Reliance Athletics High-Performance Centre in Bhubaneswar in 2019. There, she came under the mentorship of British coach James Hillier, whose guidance would prove instrumental in her progress.
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Overcoming Adversity: The journey to success was not without its challenges. In January 2020 she clocked an impressive time of 13.03 seconds in the 100m hurdles at the All India Inter-University athletics meet in Moodabidri, Karnataka, which was a national record.
This achievement earned her the Indian women's 100m hurdles national record, highlighting her exceptional talent and potential for greatness. However, due to technicalities related to doping checks and the absence of a technical delegate from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) at the event, the record couldn't be officially ratified at the time.
In 2021, Yarraji faced a back injury that sidelined her for months, and upon her return to training, she struggled with confidence, or the lack of it. Her coach, James Hillier, displayed immense patience and worked diligently to restore her self-belief and athleticism.
A Record-Breaking Spree: Yarraji's recent performances have captured the attention of athletics enthusiasts worldwide.
However, it was only in her fourth attempt that she could break the national record as the three other times her runs were recognised as wind-assisted.
"The first time I broke the national record because of the wind, it was not considered (ratified). Second time, wind...third time, wind...third time...I actually cried. I asked my coach, why this is happening to me? So that time coach told me that everything happens for good. So after that continuously I broke the national record for four times in 15 days," she told Olympics.com.
In May 2022, she clocked 13.23 seconds at the Cyprus International athletics meet in Limassol in the women’s 100m hurdles which helped her break the national record set by Anuradha Biswal (13.38s) in 2002. The occasion was made even more special as she won gold despite a stuttered start to the race.
“In India, they use a manual gun to start the race but in Europe, they use an electronic starter. I was not familiar with the sound it makes so I didn’t realise when the race had started. I only started running when I saw the other athletes start,” Jyothi Yarraji narrated to The Hindu.
Yarraji broke the women's 100m hurdles national record multiple times in a short span. She recorded a time of 13.11 seconds at the Loughborough International in the UK in May, only to improve it further to 13.04 seconds at the Harry Schulting Games in the Netherlands, just four days later.
Commonwealth Games Disappointment:
While Jyothi had high hopes for the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham, her performance fell short of expectations. Unfortunately, she failed to qualify for the final after finishing 10th in the first round.
Coming back to form: Despite the disappointment at the Commonwealth Games, Jyothi Yarraji concluded the 2022 season with an exceptional achievement. At the National Games, she won the gold medal in the 100m hurdles and set a new personal best of 12.79 seconds. This remarkable feat made her the first Indian woman to break the 13-second barrier in this discipline.
In 2023, apart from winning the gold medal at the Asian Athletics Championship, she has been able to clock sub-13s six times and even timed 12.98s at heats in Bangkok.
