SINGAPORE - It was just his third competitive 400-metre race ever, but Thiruben Thana Rajan was feeling confident ahead of it.

But even he did not expect was to smash a 32-year-old record at the 43rd Singapore Under-18 and U-20 Athletics Championships last weekend, which also saw him qualify for the International Association Athletics Federations (IAAF) World U-18 Championships this July.

Thiruben, who turns 17 in October, clocked 48.77sec to break S. Pandian’s 1985 mark of 49.40s en route to winning the boys’ U-20 final - a remarkable achievement as his first experience in the event came a week prior at the Singapore Athletics (SA) Track and Field Series 3.

A triumph in 50.18s at the men’s open final there indicated hidden potential in the National Junior College (NJC) student, who was then emboldened by a 49.80s time in the U20 heats.

“That was surprising, when I managed to hit sub-50sec; once the heats were over, I knew I could do a 48sec time,” he told TODAY last Friday after a training session.

It is the latest in a string of achievements for Thiruben, a Chelsea supporter who nce aspired to be a footballer before taking up track and field at the end of Secondary One.

“NJC didn’t offer football as a CCA (co-curricular activity) and my parents used to be runners when they were young, though just recreationally, so I thought I’d try it out,” he recalled. 

EXCEPTIONAL ATTITUDE

Placing second in his first race, a cross-country event, Thiruben grew from strength to strength and realised he could “do something in track and field” after winning the 1,500m race in an overseas school meet in 2014.

The following year, Thiruben won the 800m B Division national title - which he would go on to retain last year - and his then-coach and teacher-in-charge, Michelle Eng, introduced him to veteran coach Loh Chan Pew. 

“She felt that it’d be good if I could train with a more experienced coach and training partners, so I have to thank her for that,” he said. “If it wasn’t for her foresight, I wouldn’t be where I am now.”

Loh, who has mentored current U-18 400m record-holder Ng Chin Hui (47.97s) and former women’s 100m record-holder Amanda Choo, hailed Thiruben’s improvement as “fantastic”.

“This boy is exceptional, very disciplined and well-behaved,” the 72-year-old said. 

“My style of training is very rigid and strict… (Even) when he came to me at 14 plus, he took all my trainings seriously. 

“I wanted him to run the 400m because it’s good (beneficial) for his 800m... So we’ve discovered a talent here. He ran three times and every time, he improved.”

Thiruben’s victory came against “specialised” runners - runner-up Dinesh Hulbert placed second in last year’s A Div final, and third-placed Joshua Lim is the B Division record-holder .

“I think it (his win) came as a shock to everybody that day - nobody noticed him (before the race),” Loh added. “Definitely, he can be a top national athlete.”

It is the fastest time by any local this year, but both athlete and coach have not decided whether to switch their focus to the 400m.

Thiruben, who stands at 1.80m and weighs 56kg, said: “It also has to do with my body type; in the long term, I feel like I have more potential in the 800m, but you never know what can happen.”

MOTIVATED TO REALISE POTENTIAL

His main aim now is to record personal bests for both 400m and 800m (1:57.62) at the South-east Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Philippines at the end of this month. He will then race at April’s national schools championships, the Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Bangkok at the end of May and the IAAF meet in Kenya. 

“I didn’t realise i had qualified for the (IAAF) world youth (championships) until the night after my 400m race,” chuckled Thiruben, the only Singaporean to have qualified so far. 

“I couldn’t sleep as my mind was too awake; in the middle of the night, I suddenly thought about it and quickly checked my phone - when I found out, I couldn’t sleep even more!”

Thiruben, whose maturity and assuredness belies his years, paid tribute to his parents for their role in his athletic development. 

“They have sacrificed a lot,” he said. “I am the eldest of four kids and we don’t have a domestic helper, so they take care of everything in the house (despite) both of them still working. They are very supportive and anything that is best for me, they will do.”

Traveling to training at Yio Chu Kang Stadium from his Bukit Timah campus and then back home in Queensway leaves him little social time, but he doesn’t complain.“The ‘A’ Level programme is quite rigorous and I have to train six times a week… then do my homework after that,” he explained. 

“It’s physically tiring and also mentally, at times. 

“But I have a lot of motivation… I enjoy it in training when you are pushing yourself to the limit, even though it’s painful; the feeling when you finish a good workout, that satisfaction - I just tell myself it’ll be all worth it when I get a good timing.”

Unsurprisingly, Thiruben lists middle-distance greats David Rudisha, Hicham El Guerrouj and Sebastian Coe as his favourite runners and hopes to one day reach the “pinnacle” of the Olympics like them.

“As the years go by, it’s (become) not so much of a fantasy,” he asserted. “It’s going to be very hard, but there’s a possibility, a small chance. 

“In the long term, I want to see how far I can take my timings down to. 

“There are also the national records to aim for, but more importantly… at the end of my track and field journey, I want to know that I’ve hit my full potential.”