Bhubaneswar: He was the cynosure at Kalinga Stadium on a historic evening here on Sunday. And Animesh Kujur didn’t disappoint thousands of fans who had turned up at the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze event.
In what was the first-ever World Athletics global meet staged in India, Kujur left his rivals behind to win the Men’s 200m final in 20.77 seconds. South Korea Ko Seunghwan came in second at 20.95 and India’s Ragul Kumar, from Tamil Nadu, finished third in 21.17.
Kujur, fell short of his personal best of 20.32, but definitely not lacking style and charisma. The 22-year-old Odisha athlete broke into his characteristic Usain Bolt-style celebration after winning the race.
𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗔𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀𝗵 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄!#Odisha‘s Animesh Kujur brings glory for the country as he clinched 1st place in Men’s 200m Run at the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze.
Huge congratulations, Animesh! pic.twitter.com/lsWhqIz20a
— Odisha Sports (@sports_odisha) August 10, 2025
Kujur, who didn’t make it to the 100m final, holds national records in both 100 and 200.
Olly, the mascot, was all over the stadium, interacting with fans, dignitaries and athletes as he entertained them on an eventful evening.
𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗔𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀𝗵 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄!#Odisha‘s Animesh Kujur brings glory for the country as he clinched 1st place in Men’s 200m Run at the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze.
Huge congratulations, Animesh! pic.twitter.com/lsWhqIz20a
— Odisha Sports (@sports_odisha) August 10, 2025
Kujur’s triumph came after Odisha athlete Pragyan Prasanti Sahu’s 100m Women’s Hurdles victory, which served as the appetiser for the crowd.
Fans roar as the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze ignites Kalinga Stadium! pic.twitter.com/4n8X5qeNH2
— Odisha Sports (@sports_odisha) August 10, 2025
