Lack of experience cost me gold: Servin Sebastian

CHENNAI: Last year, race walker Servin Sebastian was close to qualifying for the Paris Olympics. He had breached the Olympic qualification mark at the National Race Walking Championships but later his timing was not considered due to faulty readings in the competition.

He then had another go at the qualification mark but fell short. The 25-year-old went through a tough period but has bounced back strongly this season by winning medals in all competitions that he has competed in.

On Tuesday, Servin added another feather to his cap as he clinched bronze in the Asian Athletics Championships men’s 20km race walk with a personal-best timing of 1:21:13.60 in Gumi.

In his maiden continental meet, Servin remained with the lead group until the 18km mark. However, he slowed down towards the end, allowing China’s Wang Zhao and Kento Yoshikawa of Japan to surge ahead and secure gold and silver respectively.

“I could have won gold, but a major mistake cost me the victory. I was feeling tired, and the coaches have always insisted that I should not take a water break in the final kilometre. Since the race course’s distance was two kilometres, I decided to take a break at the 18km mark. I had done everything correctly until then, but my lack of experience worked against me,” Servin told TOI from South Korea.

Servin’s coach Ganapathi Krishnan, who competed in 20km race walk at the Rio Olympics, reiterated what his student said and felt that his presence could have helped him perform better. “I am happy for him, but I am not satisfied as a coach. He had good training sessions, and I expected him to clock a better time. I felt that he needed someone to guide him during the race,” Ganapathi said.

Servin joined the Army Sports Institute (ASI) in Pune in 2022, and since then, Ganapathi has been his guiding light. Ganapathi played a pivotal role in Servin’s comeback after he failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics. “Servin joined the Army in 2020 but started training at the ASI in 2022. Servin performed well during trials, but there were a few technical issues that needed to be tweaked. He has developed into a better athlete since then,” Ganapathi added.

Servin has had a good start to the season, winning gold medals at the National Games and the National Race Walking Championships. With these performances, the 25-year-old is placed 45th on the ‘Road to the World Championships’ list. By winning bronze at the Asian meet, Servin will move into the top-40. Athletes who do not meet the qualification mark will have to be ranked in the top-50 to make it to the Worlds.