Kiran Baliyan is an Indian shot put thrower who created history by becoming the first Indian woman to win a medal after 72 years at the 2022 Asian Games in the shot put event.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Kiran Baliyan was born on Saturday, 6 March 1999 (age 24 years; as of 2023) in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. Her zodiac sign is Pisces. She attained a master’s degree in Physical Education from Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 6″
Weight (approx.): 75 kg
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Kiran Baliyan belongs to a Jat family in Meerut.
Parents & Siblings
Kiran Baliyan’s father, Satish Baliyan, is a head constable in the Uttar Pradesh traffic police. Her mother’s name is Bobby Baliyan. She has a younger brother.
Kiran Baliyan’s parents (centre) and other family members celebrating her wins
Career
In 2015, Kiran started practising the shot put at the Kailash Prakash Sports Stadium, Meerut. In her first year of practice, she covered a distance of 12.49m with the 3 kg put, a heavy spherical ball, at the U18 Nationals in Ranchi and was placed sixth in the shotput event. In 2016, she bagged a bronze medal at the junior nationals in Coimbatore with a throw of 14.62m in the U18 category. In 2017, she increased the weight of her put from 3 kg to 4 kg. On 6 May 2017, she hit the 15m mark for the first time in Obra and won the championship. In November 2017, Kiran bagged a gold at the Junior Athletics Championships in Vijayawada in the Under-20 category with a throw of 14.54m. In December 2017, she again bagged a gold medal at Mangalagiri with a throw of 14.37m.
Kiran Baliyan practicing shot put
On 20 April 2018, she, for the first time, crossed the mark of 15 meters with a throw of 15.23m at the Indian U20 Championships in Coimbatore and bagged a gold medal. In May 2018, she made her international debut at the South Asian U20 Championships held in Colombo and continued her winning streak by winning 5 championships back-to-back. In June 2018, she ended up fifth at the Asian Junior Championships held in Gifu, Japan. In May 2019, she crossed the 16-metre mark for the first time at the Regional Championships in Allahabad, UP, with a throw of 16.87m. In an interview, her coach talked about Kiran’s training and said,
We made her train focusing more on her lower body initially. Once she crossed the 16m mark, it made her more confident to master the variations. She would watch videos of shot putters like two-time Olympic medallist Joe Kovacs to see their movements and would practice such maneuvers.”
In January 2020, she won the Indian University Championships in Moodbidri with a throw of 15.69 metres. On 28 February 2020, she bagged a gold medal at the Khelo India University Games held in Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar, with a throw of 15.10m. On 15 March 2021, she won the Federation Cup in Patiala with a throw of 16.45m. On 30 September 2022, she set a national record with a throw of 17.14m and bagged a gold medal at the Indian National Games in Gujarat. In June 2023, she won a gold medal in the Indian Championships at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar, with a throw of 17.17m. On 29 September 2023, she created history at the age of 24 years by becoming the first Indian woman to win an Asian Games shot put medal in 72 years at the 2022 Asian Games held in Hangzhou, China; it was her Asian Games debut, and she bagged a bronze medal with a throw of 17.38m and finished behind China’s Olympic champions, Gong Lijiao (19.58m), and Song Jiayuan (18.92m).
Facts/Trivia
- She has a pet dog named Sunny.
- Before she started training with AFI (Athletics Federation of India), she was coached by Robin Singh at the Kailash Prakash Stadium in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.
- In 2015, Kiran’s father was posted as a home guard at the Kailash Prakash Sports Stadium. Kiran would often accompany him to the stadium, which led her to develop an interest towards javelin throw. Later, Kiran practised javelin throw for some time but would usually hurt herself. Her coach then decided to get her to practice shotput, which she ultimately pursued professionally.
- According to Kiran, during the initial days of her training, her mother would often help her with her stretching as female trainers were not available at the time.
Kiran Baliyan stretching with her mother
- She continued to practice even during the COVID-19 lockdown since her father had a police pass, and he used it to take Kiran to practice before curfew hours.
- She is the second Indian woman to win a medal in the shotput event at the Asian Games after Barbara Webster, an Anglo-Indian from Bombay, who won a bronze in 1951.
Kiran Baliyan at the 2022 Asian Games
- In June 2022, she was selected as a sub-inspector under sports quota in Rajasthan police.
Kiran as a sub-inspector with her parents
- In September 2023, she achieved her personal best record with a throw of 17.92m at the Indian Grand Prix in Chandigarh.
- She is close friends with Seema Punia, an Indian discus thrower and a former Asian and Commonwealth Games medallist, who advised her to join the national camp. Seema guided Kiran before the Asian Games, took care of her diet and supplements, and supported her financially when needed.
Seema congratulating Kiran for winning a bronze medal at the 2022 Asian Games
