India’s first CWG medalist in discus throw, Vikas Gowda, retires
Commonwealth gold medalist Vikas Gowda, who became the first Indian to secure gold in the sport of Discus throw in Glasgow, has announced his retirement from the sport today. Gowda quit after competing at the highest level for over 15 years since his debut in 2002 at the World Junior Championships.
Vikas Gowda will be a name long remembered in the aeons of Indian track and field events and especially in the young athletes training in the sport of Discus throw. Gowda became the first Indian and remains the only male athlete to secure gold in the sport of Discus throw at the Commonwealth Games. 34-year old Gowda’s retirement was announced by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on its Twitter page after Gowda sent the AFI a letter, that declared his intent to call it quits.
Gowda began his career in 2002 at the World Junior Championships in Jamaica but had to wait till 2005 for his first medal which he won at the Asian Championships in South Korea. Since then, Gowda has amassed a total of nine medals over a career span of 14 years.Â
Those nine medals include one CWG medal and two Asian Championships medal as well. The retirement of the four-time Olympian, who turns 25 in July did not surprise many as wasn’t part of any major international event since he last won bronze in the Asian Championships last year in Bhubaneswar.
Gowda still holds the national record of 66.28m (achieved in 2012) and is one of the most decorated Indian athletes to have ever represented the country on the international stage. But Gowda did not take part in the recent 2018 Gold Coast CWG as the AFI had made a strict rule that those who do not take part in the national championships, which served as selection trials, would not be allowed to participate in multi-sporting events.