Who is Parvej Khan? All you need to know about the first Indian Athlete to compete at NCAA Indoor Championships

Track and field athlete, Parvej Khan, has become the new sensation in Indian athletics, who has taken over the internet lately.

On March 9, 2024, Khan became the first ever Indian track athlete to participate in the NCAA Championship final in the United States of America. He finished seventh in the final of the one-mile track event, clocking an impressive 4 minutes and 3.05 seconds.

Before competing in the NCCA Championship in the USA, Parvej Khan had won numerous titles in various events in India. It is worth mentioning that Khan is a National Games winner in the 1500m event.

---

The rising Indian athlete - Parvej Khan

Indian athlete Parvej Khan’s story is a perfect reminder that dreams have no boundaries and that with perseverance, even the stars are within reach.

He was born in Haryana’s Mewat District in Chahalka Village, which is nearly 50 km south of New Delhi. He comes from a humble background as his father grew wheat and cattle fodder on five acres of land.

At a very early age, Khan realized his potential as he would beat 17 and 18-year-olds in a race. After competing in a few local villages, he took the next step and left his village to pursue the big dream. At just 13 years of age, he moved to New Delhi, where he would stay with his uncle, who drove a taxi in the city. Thus, he bagan training at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

He spent not more than a year in Delhi and shifted to Bhopal as he got the opportunity to train at the Sports Authority of India under coach Anupama Srivastava.

A slew of titles followed, thereafter, winning gold in 800m at the Under-16 nationals in 2019, bronze in the Under-18 Khelo India Games in 2020, and then gold in his career’s first-ever senior race- the 1500m at the Open National Championships in Warrangal in 2021.

Parvej Khan made heads turn after winning a gold medal at the National Games in 2022 in the 1500m event, clocking 3.40.89.

---

How did Parvej Khan compete at the NCAA Championships?

It was in early 2023 when Khan went to the USA’s Olympic training centre in Colorado as a part of the Indian contingent. He picked up a hairline fracture injury while training during the training and it led to his path towards a collegiate career.

During this time, he observed that the college students were using the same facilities. One of his Instagram friends from Morocco, who was part of a college team, suggested him to apply to one of the colleges and even put him through to one of the coaches who he said was looking for international runners.

Soon, Khan competed in the highly competitive Division 1 of the NCAA and the rest is history.