Parul Chaudhary

Parul Chaudhary Jhajj  (born 15 April 1995) is an Indian athlete from Uttar Pradesh, who specialises in 5000 metres and 3000 metres steeplechase. She is the first Indian runner to clock a sub-9 minute time in the women's 3000m.

Early life
Chaudhary hails from Iklauta Village near Meerut. She is one of four children of Krishanpal Chaudhary and Rajesh Devi. Parul ran barefoot as a teenager and competed in 800 metres in her school starting 2011. She switched to 1500 m and 3000 m, before taking to 5000 m and competed professionally in the latter event. It helped her land a job with the Western Railway in 2015 when she moved to Mumbai.

Career
In July 2023, Chaudhary won a gold in women's 3000m steeplechase in the Asian Athletics Championships held at Bangkok. In August, at the World Athletics Championships held in Budapest, she registered a personal best time and national record in 3000m steeplechase with a time of 9:15.31, in the process, qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics. At the Hangzhou Asian Games in October 2023, she claimed gold in the 5000 m event and silver in 3000 m steeplechase.

Awards

 * Arjuna Award 2023.
 * Named in Forbes India 30 under-30 2024.
 * Aces awards 2024 Sportswoman of the year 2024 award.