Gandhinagar. Kajal Waza, a young sprinter from Gujarat, has once again proved that with hard work, discipline and strong intentions, one can achieve great success at the international level even after coming from a small village. 19-year-old Kajal, from Chorwad village in Junagadh district, performed brilliantly for India in the 22nd Asian Under-20 Athletics Championship held in Hong Kong and played an important role in winning the silver medal in the women's 4X100 meter relay event.
The Indian team included Bhavana from Tamil Nadu, Aarti from Haryana, Nipam from Uttar Pradesh and Kajal Vaja from Gujarat. All four players displayed excellent coordination and fast speed and clocked a time of 45.04 seconds. With this brilliant performance, the Indian team not only won the silver medal but also created a new national record in the Under-20 category. The team created a new history in Indian athletics by breaking the previous record of 45.08 seconds. The excellent baton exchange and excellent coordination of the players made this victory more special.
Kajal Waja's success is also considered very inspiring because she comes from an ordinary farmer family. His father Hirabhai Vaja supports the family by farming and laboring in Chorwad, a coastal village in Junagadh district. Despite financial troubles, Kajal never let her sporting dreams weaken. Despite limited resources, he practiced continuously and remained completely focused on his goal.
For better performance and preparation, Kajal took a drop of one year during Class 12 so that she could completely focus on her training and competitions. The results of his hard work and dedication are now visible at the international level. Kajal's family member Manthan Dabhi said that she had a special interest in sports since childhood and since her school days, she has been continuously performing brilliantly in various competitions.
Kajal's coach Shivam Upadhyay attributed her success to her hard work and strong will to win. He said that Kajal is one of the most promising young sprinters of the country. According to the coach, Kajal has won many medals for Gujarat in 100m, 200m and relay events. His discipline, confidence and competitive mindset make him different from other players. She participates in every practice session with full dedication and constantly strives to improve her performance.
This silver medal won in Hong Kong has become another major achievement in Kajal's achievements. Earlier, he had also won a silver medal in the 4X100 meter relay event in the South Asian Senior Athletics Championship held in Ranchi in the year 2025. Apart from this, the national record of 60 meter race in the under-20 category is also registered in his name.
In the first Indoor Open Athletics Championship held in Bhubaneswar in March 2026, Kajal won the gold medal by completing the 60 meter race in 7.50 seconds. With this he also created a new national record. After this brilliant performance, Kajal started being counted among the fastest and talented young runners of India.
Kajal's sports journey started with the school program of Sports Authority of Gujarat (SAG). After this, in the year 2019, he took admission in District Level Sports School (DLSS) located in Kodinar, where his talent got the right direction. Considering his potential, he was selected for the High Performance Center (HPC) located in Nadiad in the year 2023. Here they are being trained with modern facilities and expert coaching.
Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister and Sports Minister Harsh Sanghvi congratulated Kajal Waza and the Indian women's relay team for this achievement. He said that the state government under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel is providing every necessary facility to the players to reach the international level. The success of Kajal is a matter of pride for the entire Gujarat and the country.
It is noteworthy that in the same Asian Under-20 Athletics Championship, Rahul Jakhar, a resident of Vapi, Gujarat, made India proud by creating a new national record in the decathlon event and winning the gold medal.
