Tejaswin Shankar
 Shankar in 2022 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nickname | TJ |
| Nationality |  Indian |
| Born | 21 December 1998 Delhi, India |
| Alma mater | |
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)[1] |
| Weight | 81 kg (179 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Track and field |
| Event | Decathlon |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal bests | Decathlon: 7826 NR (2025) HJ: 2.29 m NR (2018) HJ (i): 2.28 m NR (2018) |
Medal record | |
Tejaswin Shankar (born 21 December 1998) is an Indian track and field athlete, formerly a high jumper, now specializes in decathlon. He made history by winning India's first-ever high jump medal at the Commonwealth Games, clinching bronze at the 2022 edition. After his transition to decathlon, Shankar won a silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games. He further demonstrated his prowess in decathlon with a silver and a bronze medal win at the Asian Championships in 2025 and 2023 respectively. Shankar was also the NCAA Division I Champion in high jump in 2018 and 2022, becoming one of the most accomplished Indian athletes on the collegiate circuit.
Early and personal life
[edit]Shankar was born on 21 December 1998 in Delhi into a Tamil Brahmin family. He hails from Saket in South Delhi. He studied at the Sardar Patel Vidyalaya in New Delhi, where he played cricket until eighth grade before his physical education teacher suggested he switch to high jump. He soon started winning medals at inter-school athletics meets. His father Harishankar, a lawyer, died of blood cancer in 2014.[1]
Shankar received a four-year athletics scholarship to the Kansas State University in 2017 where he studied accounting and finance.[2] In what is considered an unconventional move for an active athlete, he briefly pursued a corporate career in the United States, working with Deloitte.[3] However, he eventually quit the corporate world to focus on being a "full-time athlete".
Shankar married former Indian sprinter Siddhi Hiray in a private ceremony in November 2024. The couple had been in a long-term relationship and are also business partners. In 2024, they co-founded King’s Sports Group, an initiative aimed at helping talented Indian student-athletes secure sports scholarships and opportunities in the U.S. collegiate system.[4]
Career
[edit]Shankar won the gold medal at the 2015 Commonwealth Youth Games in Apia, setting a Games record of 2.14 metres. He won silver at the 2016 South Asian Games in Guwahati with a leap of 2.17 metres.[1] Due to a groin injury, he finished sixth at the Asian Junior Championships and missed the 2016 World Junior Championships.[5]
At the age of 17, Shankar rose to prominence when he broke Hari Shankar Roy's 12-year-old national record of 2.25 metres with a jump of 2.26 metres at the Junior National Championships in Coimbatore in November 2016.[6] He was the third best IAAF junior high jumper in the world that year.[7] He was bedridden for six months in 2017 with a slipped disc.[8]
In January 2018, Shankar broke Roy's indoor national record with a mark of 2.18 metres, and then bettered it by a centimetre the same month. In February, he further improved on his indoor record with a 2.28 metres leap at the Big 12 Indoor Athletics Championships in Ames.[9]
Shankar finished sixth at the 2018 Commonwealth Games during qualification for the games Shankar bettered his own national record by jumping 2.28 metres at the 22nd Federation Cup Indian Championships in Patiala in March 2018. It was the joint-best performance to qualify for the Commonwealth Games.[10][11] He further broke his national record by another centimeter representing K-State athletics, jumping 2.29m in April 2018 at the Texas tech invite.
Shankar, who was not initially selected in the 2022 Commonwealth Games contingent despite meeting the qualification standard, took the Athletics Federation of India to court and was later brought in as a replacement. He secured the bronze medal at the event in Birmingham with a jump of 2.22 metres; this was India's first ever high jump medal at the Commonwealth Games.[12]
He switched to the decathlon and won a Bronze at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships in July. He then bettered the decathlon Indian National Record by 6 points in October 2023, to finish second at the 2022 Asian Games, earning a silver medal.
In February 2024, he won gold at the World Athletics indoor tour challenger, the high jump gala at Elmos 2024 in Belgium.[13]
In May 2025, Shankar won a silver medal in the decathlon event at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships held in Gumi, South Korea.
Personal bests
[edit]Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.
Outdoor
[edit]- As of 27 July 2025
| Event | Performance | Location | Date | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Decathlon | — | Nakło nad Notecią | 26–27 July 2025 | 7826 points |
| 100 metres | 11.02 (+0.4 m/s) | Nakło nad Notecią | 26 July 2025 | 856 points |
| Long jump | 7.62 m (25 ft 0 in) (+0.9 m/s) | Tucson | 6 April 2023 | 965 points |
| Shot put | 13.79 m (45 ft 2+3⁄4 in) | Gumi | 27 May 2025 | 715 points |
| High jump | 2.19 m (7 ft 2 in) | Gumi | 27 May 2025 | 982 points |
| 400 metres | 48.41 | Tucson | 6 April 2023 | 889 points |
| 110 metres hurdles | 14.58 (+0.9 m/s) | Gumi | 28 May 2025 | 901 points |
| Discus throw | 39.28 m (128 ft 10+1⁄4 in) | Hangzhou | 3 October 2023 | 650 points |
| Pole vault | 4.10 m (13 ft 5+1⁄4 in) | Hangzhou | 3 October 2023 | 645 points |
| Javelin throw | 54.85 m (179 ft 11+1⁄4 in) | Kochi | 21 April 2025 | 665 points |
| 1500 metres | 4:35.96 | Kochi | 21 April 2025 | 706 points |
| Virtual Best Performance | 7974 points | |||
| Event | Performance | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| High jump | 2.29 m (7 ft 6 in) | Lubbock | 27 April 2018 |
| Triple jump | 16.09 m (52 ft 9+1⁄4 in) | Lubbock | 27 February 2021 |
Indoor
[edit]- As of 24 June 2025
| Event | Performance | Location | Date | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heptathlon | — | Manhattan, Kansas | 29–30 January 2021 | 5,650 points |
| 60 metres | 7.16 | USA | 26 January 2022 | 826 points |
| Long jump | 7.40 m (24 ft 3+1⁄4 in) | Manhattan, Kansas | 21 January 2022 | 910 points |
| Shot put | 11.90 m (39 ft 1⁄2 in) | Manhattan, Kansas | 29 January 2021 | 600 points |
| High jump | 2.26 m (7 ft 4+3⁄4 in) | Boston | 4 February 2023 | 1,051 points |
| 60 metres hurdles | 8.05 | Belgrade | 23 February 2025 | 545 points |
| Pole vault | 3.75 m (12 ft 3+1⁄2 in) | Manhattan, Kansas | 30 January 2021 | 549 points |
| 1000 metres | 2:41.22 | Manhattan, Kansas | 30 January 2021 | 860 points |
| Virtual Best Performance | 5,765 points | |||
| Event | Performance | Location | Date | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pentathlon | — | Manhattan, Kansas | 5 December 2020 | 4,343 points[14] |
| 60 metres hurdles | 8.34 | Manhattan, Kansas | 5 December 2020 | 898 points |
| Long jump | 7.48 m (24 ft 6+1⁄4 in) | Manhattan, Kansas | 5 December 2020 | 930 points |
| Shot put | 12.73 m (41 ft 9 in) | Manhattan, Kansas | 10 December 2021 | 651 points |
| High jump | 2.24 m (7 ft 4 in) | Manhattan, Kansas | 5 December 2020 | 1,031 points |
| 1000 metres | 2:39.35 | Manhattan, Kansas | 5 December 2020 | 881 points |
| Virtual Best Performance | 4,391 points | |||
| Event | Performance | Location | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| High jump | 2.28 m (7 ft 5+3⁄4 in) | Ames, Iowa | 24 February 2018 |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Koshie, Nihal (25 December 2016). "Tejaswin Shankar is India's high jump hope". The Indian Express. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ "Record breaker Delhi high jumper Tejaswin Shankar idolises Sehwag". Asianet India. 7 March 2018. Archived from the original on 1 April 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ "'There's Much More to Life than Sport'". Open The Magazine. 7 October 2022. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
- ^ "Athlete-couple Siddhi Hiray and Tejaswin Shankar chart a course for India's NCAA aspirants". The Indian Express. 13 June 2025. Retrieved 23 July 2025.
- ^ Pritam, Norris (13 November 2016). "Tejaswin Shankar's journey from budding cricketer to high jump national record holder". Firstpost. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ "Tejaswin Shankar breaks senior national record". Deccan Chronicle. 11 November 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ Rayan, Stan (2 March 2018). "Leap of faith". The Hindu. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ Srinivasan, Aneesh (18 July 2017). "Despite career-threatening injury, Tejaswin Shankar sets meet record". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ "Tejaswin Shankar breaks national high jump record, grabs bronze at Big 12 indoor championships". scroll.in. 25 February 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ "Result - Men's High Jump Final". Gold Coast 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
- ^ Selvaraj, Jonathan. "Tejaswin Shankar equals (own) national record to book Commonwealth berth". ESPN.in. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
- ^ "Commonwealth Games 2022: Tejaswin Shankar wins high jump bronze after court battle for selection". India Today. 4 August 2022. Retrieved 4 August 2022.
- ^ "High jumper Tejaswin Shankar wins season-opening meet in Belgium". The Times of India. 12 February 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "K-State Winter Invitational". tfrrs.org. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
