Hima Das Major Medals and Results
| Year | Competition | Result | Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Commonwealth Games, Gold Coast | 6th | 400 m |
| 2018 | World U20 Championships, Tampere | Gold | 400 m, 51.46 s |
| 2018 | Asian Games, Jakarta | Silver | 400 m, 50.79 s (national record at the time) |
| 2018 | Asian Games, Jakarta | Gold | Women’s 4×400 m relay |
| 2018 | Asian Games, Jakarta | Gold (upgraded) | Mixed 4×400 m relay |
| 2019 | European summer meets (Poland and Czech Republic) | 5 wins in one month | 4 in the 200 m, 1 in the 400 m |
| 2022 | Commonwealth Games, Birmingham | Semi-final | 200 m, missed the final by 0.01 s |
Hima Das Career Journey
Tampere 2018: World Champion at 18
On 12 July 2018 at the World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland, Hima came from behind in the final straight to win the 400 m in 51.46 seconds. It was India’s first gold in a track event at any world championship. The win made her a household name overnight and earned congratulations from the Prime Minister and much of Bollywood.
Jakarta 2018: Asian Games Success
A month later at the Asian Games in Jakarta, she won silver in the 400 m in 50.79 seconds, a national record at the time. She anchored India’s women’s 4×400 m relay team to gold and also ran in the mixed 4×400 m relay, which initially took silver and was later upgraded to gold after the winning Bahrain team was disqualified.
2019: Five Golds in a Month
A lower-back problem forced her to pull up during the 400 m at the 2019 Asian Championships in Doha. Racing mainly over 200 m to manage it, she then won five races in Europe in July 2019, at meets in Poznan and Kutno in Poland and Kladno, Tabor and Nove Mesto in the Czech Republic, the last of them back over 400 m.
Injuries and Setbacks (2020 to 2026)
The years since have been dominated by injury. A hamstring injury at the 2021 Inter-State Championships ended her hopes of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics. At the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham she missed the 200 m final by just one-hundredth of a second. In 2023 back and hamstring problems kept her out of the Asian Games trials. Recent reports describe her as working her way back gradually, racing mainly the 100 m and 200 m while the back injury continues to trouble her.
The 2023 Whereabouts Case
In September 2023 the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) provisionally suspended Hima over three whereabouts failures within 12 months. Whereabouts rules require athletes to report where they can be found for testing; the case did not involve a positive drug test. NADA’s disciplinary panel cleared her in 2024, and its appeal panel upheld that decision later the same year. NADA subsequently listed a 16-month suspension running from July 2023 to November 2024 under a case resolution agreement, a notice it later removed from its website amid confusion over the timeline. She was eligible to compete again from late 2024.
Hima Das Records and Milestones
- First Indian to win a world title in a track event, at any level (World U20 400 m, 2018).
- First Indian woman to win a world title in athletics at any age level.
- 400 m personal best of 50.79 s at the 2018 Asian Games, a national record at the time.
- Two Asian Games golds (women’s and mixed 4×400 m relays) and one silver (400 m) in 2018.
- Five international race wins in a single month in July 2019.
Hima Das Awards and Honours
- Arjuna Award (2018)
- Named UNICEF India’s first Youth Ambassador (2018)
- Appointed Assam’s sports brand ambassador
- Appointed Deputy Superintendent of Police, Assam Police (February 2021)
- A tiger cub at Bannerghatta Biological Park in Bengaluru was named Hima in her honour
