Priti Lamba (Athlete) Wiki, Age, Husband, Family, Biography & More

Priti Lamba is an Indian track athlete. She won a bronze medal at the Asian Games women’s 3000 metres steeplechase event held in Hangzhou, China.

Wiki/Biography

Priti Lamba was born on 18 December 1995 (age 27 years; as of 2022) in Jawan, Faridabad, Haryana. Her zodiac sign is Sagittarius.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 2″

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Brown

Family

Parents & Siblings

As per a report in an article published in The Bridge, Jagbir Lamba works at a petrol pump in the village of Faridabad with a salary of Rs 10,000 per month. There is not much information about Priti’s parents and siblings.

Husband & Children

Priti Lamba is married to Vicky Tomar, who works in the Railway department. Vicky, who was a former national-level steeplechaser is also Priti’s coach. There is not much information about Priti’s children.

Career

During her initial days, Priti practised professionally at SAI NS Southern Centre, Bangalore. Before moving to Bangalore for her training, Priti Lamba was also an athlete at the SAI, Bhopal.

In an interview, Priti shared that her physical education teacher inspired her to take sports professionally, she said,

There was not much sports in our village; we had one physical education teacher, who encouraged me to take up sports. He still calls me to know about my progress.” ^[1]The Tribune

In 2017, Priti suffered an injury while training at the national camp and had to undergo ankle surgery. She has a metal plate in her ankle which made it difficult for her to continue to run track and was therefore not selected for the Asian Games 2018 track team. She shared,

I fractured my right ankle at two places while going over a water jump at the national camp, and had to undergo surgery. I was at my peak but lost a whole year. I started training in 2019. At that time, it was Vicky who kept me motivated, otherwise I was ready to quit.” ^[2]The Tribune

In 2019 after her recovery from her injury, she participated in many track events. On 13 January 2019, Priti Lamba won the Tata Steel 21 km half marathon at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar. She received Rs 75,000 as the winning amount.

In March 2019, Priti Lamba won the Indian Elite 10k My Country Run race sponsored by IGI Group in Bangalore and received a sum of Rs 50,000 as the prize money.

In September 2019, she won the Indian Elite fastest track event by the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board. Priti received a sum of Rs 3,00,000 as the prize money.

Although she trains under Delhi-based coach Rakesh Yadav, Vicky Tomar, her husband, who is also a former national-level steeplechaser himself, travels with her to competition events and helps her during off-season training camps. In February 2020, Priti won the first prize in the Tata Steel Runathon event in Haryana. She received a sum of Rs 41,000 as the winning amount.

In April 2020, she won the Senior Federation Cup. In August 2022, Priti won the Marathon in Lucknow. She received a sum of Rs 1,00,000 as the winning amount. Priti won in a team event in Dhaka, Bangladesh in January 2023. She received an amount of Rs 1,00,000 as the prize money.

Since 2023, she has also been the captain of the Indian track team. After winning the Gold medal for the 3 Km Steeplechase 26th Federation Cup Senior Meet in Ranchi, India, she qualified for the Asian Games 2023 in May 2023.

Priti had qualified for the Asian Championships held in Thailand with a time of 9:47.78s in the 3000m steeplechase. She ranked fourth in the event.

Priti also works as a Junior Clerk in the Engineering Department office of the Vijayawada division in the South Central Railways. ^[3]Hans India

Controversies

Priti Lamba criticizes the recruitment of Kenyan athletes.

After her win in the Asian Games 2023, in an interview with the DD News in 2023, Priti Lamba conveyed her concerns about countries recruiting athletes from other countries to compete in the Asian Games. Sharing an example, she mentioned the Kenyan athletes sponsored by Qatar and Kazakhstan for the Asian Games. Parul Chaudhary, who secured the silver medal in the Asian Games 2023 held in Hangzhou, China, marked the first time that India won two medals in a single steeplechase event for women. Among the competitors that Priti referred to was Daisy Jepkemei, who represented Kazakhstan but was originally from Kenya. Priti criticized and condemned countries for importing athletes and stated,

This practice harms Asian athletes. Qatar sponsors Kenyan players to represent their country when they should focus on developing their own athletes instead of increasing their medal count through acquisitions. They should invest in nurturing local talent rather than recruiting players from other nations. The athlete who competed for Kazakhstan originally hails from Kenya.” ^[4]DD News

Medals

Gold

• In May 2023, Priti won a gold medal in the 3 Km Steeplechase 26th Federation Cup Senior Meet in Ranchi, India.

• In August 2023, Priti won a Gold medal in the Sri Lankan National Athletic Championship in the Women’s 3 km Steeple Chase event.

• In September 2023, Priti won a Gold medal in the 3000-meter Women’s Steeple Chase event in Chandigarh, Punjab.

Bronze

• In October 2023, Priti Lamba won a Bronze medal in the Women’s 3000-metre event in the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China.

Congratulations to Priti Lamba for securing the Bronze Medal in the challenging Women's 3000m Steeplechase at the Asian Games!
Her unwavering perseverance and sheer determination shine as a beacon of inspiration. pic.twitter.com/kpe8GrEV6G

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 2, 2023

Facts/Trivia

• Her name is also spelt as Preeti. ^[5]Priti Lamba – Instagram

• Priti won her first medal at a block-level event in Ballabhgarh.

• Among the seven women competing in the final for the Asian Championships held in Thailand, Priti Lamba had the slowest personal best. She was not even a member of the initial Indian team that competed at the Asian Games. By completing the requirements for AFI’s selection at the IGP-5 in Chandigarh two weeks before the Games, she had been selected at the last minute.