Pooja Singh (athlete)

Pooja Singh
Personal information
Full namePooja Hansraj Singh
Born (2007-02-21) 21 February 2007
Bosti, Haryana, India
Sport
SportAthletics
Event
High jump
Coached bySahana Kumari
Achievements and titles
Personal bests1.93 m NR NU20R (Hong Kong, 2026)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  India
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place2025 GumiHigh jump
Asian Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place2026 TianjinHigh jump
Asian U20 Championships
Gold medal – first place2026 Hong KongHigh jump
Silver medal – second place2023 YecheonHigh jump
South Asian U20 Championships
Gold medal – first place2024 ChennaiHigh jump
Asian U18 Championships
Gold medal – first place2023 TashkentHigh jump
Commonwealth Youth Games
Bronze medal – third place2023 Trinidad & TobagoHigh jump

Pooja Hansraj Singh (born 21 February 2007) is an Indian high jumper. She won the gold medal at the 2025 Asian Championships and the silver medal at the 2026 Asian Indoor Championships.

Early life

Pooja hails from Bosti village in Fatehabad district of Haryana. Her father Hansraj is a construction worker.[1][2] Her childhood coach spotted her during a yoga session and was impressed with her yoga postures, and recruited her as a high jumper.[3] She did her practice jumps on village fields with bamboo poles and sacks of husk due to the financial hardships she faced at the start of her career.[4] She did her Bachelor of Physical Education from Lovely Professional University.[5] She is sponsored by the Olympic Gold Quest.[6]

Career

Pooja started her jumps under coach Balwan Singh Parta at a small facility at Parta Sports Academy in Haryana which had no landing mats.[7] Her first competitive high jump event was a local meet where she cleared 90 cm. Soon after, she won her first gold medal in the U14 category with a jump of 1.41 m. In 2022, she won the gold medal at the Junior National Championships in Guwahati, setting a new U16 national record with a jump of 1.76 m.[8]

Pooja made her international debut at the 2023 Asian U18 Championships in Tashkent, where she won the gold medal with a jump of 1.77 m.[3] She won a silver medal at the 2023 Asian U20 Championships in Yecheon, with a jump of 1.82 m.[9] She finished seventh with a jump of 1.75 m at the 2023 Asian Championships in Bangkok.[10] She won the bronze medal with a jump of 1.75 m at the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad & Tobago.[11] In October 2023, she finished sixth with a jump of 1.80 m at the Asian Games in Hangzhou.[12]

At the 2024 World U20 Championships in Lima, she finished second in her group in the qualification round with a jump of 1.83 m, setting a U20 national record. She finished ninth in the final with a jump of 1.80 m.[7] She won the gold medal at the 2024 South Asian U20 Championships in Chennai, with a jump of 1.80 m.[13]

Pooja claimed gold at the 2025 Asian Championships in Gumi, with a season best jump of 1.89 m, breaking her own U20 national record.[14] Later in the season, she suffered a grade-2 ligament tear which ruled her out of the 2025 World University Games.[15]

Pooja won the silver medal at the 2026 Asian Indoor Championships in Tianjin, with a jump of 1.87 m, becoming the first Indian woman to win a high jump medal at the championships.[16] At the 2026 Asian U20 Championships in Hong Kong, she won the gold medal with a jump of 1.93 m, setting a championship record and surpassing the previous senior national record of 1.92 m set by her coach Sahana Kumari in 2012.[17] At the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, she finished eighth with a jump of 1.77 m.[18] She finished seventh at the 2026 World U20 Championships in Eugene, with a jump of 1.84 m.[19]

International competitions

YearCompetitionVenuePositionNotes
Representing  India
2023 Asian U18 Championships Tashkent, Uzbekistan 1st 1.77 m
Asian U20 Championships Yecheon, South Korea 2nd 1.82 m
Asian Championships Bangkok, Thailand 7th 1.75 m
Commonwealth Youth Games Trinidad & Tobago 3rd 1.75 m
Asian Games Hangzhou, China 6th 1.80 m
2024 World U20 Championships Lima, Peru 9th 1.80 m
South Asian U20 Championships Chennai, India 1st 1.80 m
2025 Asian Championships Gumi, South Korea 1st 1.89 m
2026 Asian Indoor Championships Tianjin, China 2nd 1.87 m
Asian U20 Championships Hong Kong, China 1st 1.93 m
Commonwealth Games Glasgow, Scotland 8th 1.77 m
World U20 Championships Eugene, U.S. 7th 1.84 m

Seasonal bests

Year Date Location Performance Notes
2022 15 November Guwahati, India 1.76 m
2023 6 June Yecheon, South Korea 1.82 m
2024 9 December Bhubaneswar, India 1.85 m
2025 30 May Gumi, South Korea 1.89 m
2026 29 May Hong Kong, China 1.93 m NR NU20R

References

  1. ↑ Ganguly, Archishman (30 May 2026). "Big leap: Teen star high jumper Pooja Singh breaks national record—set by her coach 14 years ago". The Print.
  2. ↑ Selvaraj, Jonathan (13 June 2023). "Haryana mason's daughter, Pooja, takes flight in Indian athletics". The Hindu.
  3. 1 2 "Spotted at yoga camp, teen high jumps to Asian Games". The Times of India. 21 September 2023. ISSN 0971-8257.
  4. ↑ "Teen star Pooja Singh smashes high jump senior national record during Asian U20 Championships". The Hindu. 30 May 2026. ISSN 0971-751X.
  5. ↑ Kaura, Ashok. "Jalandhar: With 1.93m record, high jumper Pooja Singh scales new heights". The Tribune.
  6. ↑ Kapur-Gomes, Suruchi (28 June 2026). "Raising the Bar High". The New Indian Express.
  7. 1 2 "World Athletics U-20 Championships 2024: Pooja Singh breaks U-20 NR in high jump to qualify for final". Sportstar. 30 August 2024.
  8. ↑ Sharma, Medha (21 July 2026). "Commonwealth Games 2026: All you need to know about Pooja Singh". The Bridge.
  9. ↑ "Pooja Singh breaks U20 NR in high jump to qualify for final at World U20 C'ships". The New Indian Express. 30 August 2024.
  10. ↑ "2023 Asian Athletics Championships | Women's High Jump". World Athletics.
  11. ↑ "Commonwealth Youth Games: India win a silver, two bronze on final day". Onmanorama. 11 August 2023.
  12. ↑ "19th Asian Games | Women's High Jump". World Athletics.
  13. ↑ "2024 South Asian U20 Athletics Championships | Women's High Jump". World Athletics.
  14. ↑ "Pooja wins gold, becomes 2nd Indian woman high jumper to medal at Asian Athletics Championships". The Hindu. 30 May 2025.
  15. ↑ "High jump star Pooja suffers ligament injury, to miss most of season". Sportstar. 18 July 2025.
  16. ↑ "2026 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships | Women's High Jump". World Athletics.
  17. ↑ "Teen star Pooja Singh smashes high jump senior national record during Asian U20 Championships". The Hindu. 30 May 2026. ISSN 0971-751X.
  18. ↑ Vishnu, P. N. (29 July 2026). "CWG 2026: Pooja Singh finishes eighth in Commonwealth Games high jump final". mint.
  19. ↑ "World U-20 Athletics Championships 2026: Pooja Singh finishes seventh in women's high jump". Sportstar. 10 August 2026.
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