India’s impressive Commonwealth Games campaign may have just concluded, but the spotlight now shifts to the country’s next generation of athletes as the World Athletics U20 Championships get underway on Wednesday.
A 36-member Indian contingent will compete across a range of events over the next five days, with several athletes arriving on the back of strong performances at the Asian U20 Championships earlier this year. The tournament, being held in Eugene, USA, is another opportunity for India’s emerging stars to test themselves against the world’s best junior talent, with an eye on progressing to the senior level in the coming years.
One of the biggest names in the squad is high jumper Pooja Singh, who heads into the championships in sensational form. The 20-year-old rewrote the record books at the Asian U20 Championships in Hong Kong by clearing 1.93m to win gold, breaking Sahana Kumari’s 14-year-old national record of 1.92m. The effort also took her past the Commonwealth Games qualifying standard, underlining her credentials as one of India’s brightest athletics prospects.
Another athlete to watch will be long jumper Shahnavaz Khan, who has steadily emerged as one of India’s most promising talents over the last 12 months. The youngster earned his place in the squad after consistent performances on the domestic circuit and will be hoping to make an impression on the global stage. Competing in a field packed with elite junior talent, the championships offer Khan an important opportunity to gain international experience and measure himself against the world’s best in his age group.
India will also field athletes in the men’s javelin, 800m, race walk, relay events, discus throw, triple jump and hurdles, among others, as the country looks to build on the momentum generated by its successful Commonwealth Games campaign.
World Athletics U20 Championships 2026: India’s entry list
MEN
5000m Race Walk: Nitin Gupta
800m: Uwin Anand Ananthan, Mogali Venkatram
400m: Mohammed Ashfaq, Piyush Raj
400m Hurdles: Amit Kumar
High Jump: K. Ambriesh, Basant
Long Jump: R.C. Jithin Arjunan, Shahnavaz Khan
Triple Jump: Dhanush Raj, P. Royshan
Javelin Throw: T. Dharanidharan, Ashish Yadav
Discus Throw: Nishchay
4x100m Relay: J. Krishna, Aditya Pisal, Anshu Rajak, Neil Samraj, Rudra Shinde
4x400m Relay: Ranjith Kumar, Nakul Prabhu, Piyush Raj, Sayed Sabeer
WOMEN
Shot Put: Anshu
High Jump: Pooja Singh
400m Hurdles: Tanu Chaudhary
Discus Throw: Amanat Kamboj
Javelin Throw: Poonam
4x100m Relay: Aarti, G. Bhavana, Rujula Amol Bhonsle, Ananya Suresh, Kajal Hirabhai Vaja
4x400m Relay: Thiya Arumugam, Tahura Khatun, Bhoomika Nehate
INDIA’S SCHEDULE IN U20 CHAMPIONSHIPS
Wednesday, August 5
100m hurdles heptathlon heats – 10:30 PM
Men’s javelin throw qualification A – 10:33 PM
4x400m mixed relay round 1 – 10:52 PM
Men’s hammer throw qualification A – 11:15 PM
High jump heptathlon – 11:20 PM
Women’s 100m round 1 – 11:24 PM
Men’s javelin throw qualification B – 11:50 PM
Thursday, August 6
Men’s 100m round 1 – 12:14 AM
Men’s hammer throw qualification B – 12:45 AM
Men’s 800m round 1 – 1:05 AM
Women’s long jump qualification – 1:10 AM
Men’s shot put qualification – 1:45 AM
Women’s 800m round 1 – 1:55 AM
Women’s pole vault qualification – 6:30 AM
Women’s discus throw qualification A – 6:30 AM
Women’s 100m semi-finals – 6:35 AM
Shot put heptathlon – 6:50 AM
Men’s 100m semi-finals – 6:58 AM
Women’s 3000m steeplechase round 1 – 7:30 AM
Women’s discus throw qualification B – 7:50 AM
200m heptathlon heats – 8:05 AM
Men’s shot put final – 8:20 AM
Women’s 5000m final – 8:25 AM
Men’s 5000m final – 8:52 AM
4x400m mixed relay final – 9:20 AM
Women’s shot put qualification – 10:30 PM
Women’s 400m hurdles round 1 – 10:32 PM
Long jump heptathlon – 10:55 PM
Men’s 400m hurdles round 1 – 11:15 PM
Men’s high jump qualification – 11:35 PM
Friday, August 7
4x100m mixed relay round 1 – 12:07 AM
Men’s triple jump qualification – 12:20 AM
Women’s 400m round 1 – 12:25 AM
Javelin throw heptathlon – 1:00 AM
Men’s 400m round 1 – 1:10 AM
Men’s 3000m steeplechase round 1 – 2:02 AM
Men’s pole vault qualification – 6:35 AM
Women’s discus throw final – 6:35 AM
800m heptathlon – 6:40 AM
Women’s 1500m round 1 – 7:00 AM
Women’s shot put final – 7:35 AM
Women’s 1500m round 1 – 7:38 AM
Women’s long jump final – 7:58 AM
Men’s 400m semi-finals – 8:12 AM
Women’s 400m semi-finals – 8:35 AM
Women’s 100m final – 9:05 AM
Men’s 100m final – 9:20 AM
Women’s javelin throw qualification A – 10:30 PM
Men’s 100m decathlon heats – 10:30 PM
Women’s hammer throw qualification A – 10:35 PM
Women’s 100m hurdles round 1 – 11:00 PM
Men’s long jump decathlon – 11:15 PM
Women’s high jump qualification – 11:35 PM
Men’s 110m hurdles round 1 – 11:50 PM
Saturday, August 8
Women’s hammer throw qualification B – 12:00 AM
Women’s javelin throw qualification B – 12:07 AM
Women’s 200m round 1 – 12:45 AM
Men’s long jump qualification – 1:13 AM
Men’s 200m round 1 – 1:40 AM
Men’s shot put decathlon – 1:50 AM
Men’s high jump decathlon – 5:30 AM
Men’s hammer throw final – 5:35 AM
Women’s 100m hurdles semi-finals – 7:45 AM
Men’s 110m hurdles semi-finals – 8:10 AM
Women’s 800m semi-finals – 8:35 AM
Men’s triple jump final – 8:55 AM
Men’s 800m semi-finals – 9:00 AM
Women’s 200m semi-finals – 9:25 AM
Men’s 200m semi-finals – 9:48 AM
Women’s 3000m steeplechase final – 10:10 AM
Men’s javelin throw final – 10:15 AM
Men’s 400m decathlon – 10:30 AM
Men’s 3000m final – 10:53 AM
Women’s 400m final – 11:15 AM
Men’s 400m final – 11:23 AM
Men’s 110m hurdles decathlon – 10:30 PM
Women’s triple jump qualification – 10:35 PM
Men’s 5000m race walk final – 10:55 PM
Men’s discus throw decathlon – 11:15 PM
Women’s 5000m race walk final – 11:30 PM
Sunday, August 9
4x400m relay round 1 – 12:10 AM
Discus throw decathlon – 12:25 AM
4x400m relay round 1 – 12:40 AM
Men’s pole vault decathlon – 12:55 AM
Women’s 4x100m relay round 1 – 1:10 AM
Men’s discus throw qualification A – 1:20 AM
Men’s 4x100m relay round 1 – 1:40 AM
Men’s pole vault decathlon – 1:45 AM
Men’s discus throw qualification B – 2:30 AM
Men’s javelin throw decathlon – 6:30 AM
4x100m mixed relay final – 6:35 AM
Men’s high jump final – 6:35 AM
Women’s 400m hurdles semi-finals – 6:45 AM
Women’s Pole vault final – 7:15 AM
Men’s 400m hurdles semi-finals – 7:11 AM
Men’s javelin throw decathlon – 7:35 AM
Men’s 800m final – 7:38 AM
Men’s long jump final – 7:40 AM
Women’s 800m final – 7:53 AM
Women’s 100m hurdles final – 8:05 AM
Men’s 110m hurdles final – 8:15 AM
Women’s 3000m final – 8:25 AM
Men’s 200m final – 8:50 AM
Men’s 1500m decathlon – 9:03 AM
Women’s 200m final – 9:20 AM
Women’s hammer throw final – 12:35 AM
Men’s discus throw final – 12:40 AM
Men’s pole vault final – 12:45 AM
Women’s high jump final – 1:00 AM
Women’s 4x100m relay final – 1:33 AM
Women’s triple jump final – 1:42 AM
Men’s 4x100m relay final – 1:45 AM
Women’s 400m hurdles final – 2:00 AM
Men’s 400m hurdles final – 2:10 AM
Women’s javelin throw final – 2:18 AM
Women’s 1500m final – 2:22 AM
Men’s 3000m steeplechase final – 2:34 AM
Men’s 1500m final – 2:55 AM
Women’s 4x400m relay final – 3:12 AM
Men’s 4x400m relay final – 3:25 AM
WORLD ATHLETICS U20 CHAMPIONSHIPS: LIVESTREAM
The World Athletics Championship U20 will have no broadcast. You can stream it live on WorldAthletics+ website.
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