M. D. Valsamma
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| Medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 M. D. Valsamma |
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| Women's Athletics | |||
Competitor for  India |
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| Asian Games | |||
| Gold | 1982 Asian Games | 400m hurdles | |
| Silver | 1982 Asian Games | 400m | |
| Silver | 1990 Asian Games | 400m | |
| Silver | 1990 Asian Games | 100m | |
| South Asian Games | |||
| Gold | 1989 SAF Games | 400m | |
| Silver | 1989 SAF Games | 400 metres | |
| Bronze | 1989 SAF Games | 100 metres | |
Manathoor Devasia Valsamma (born 29 October 1960), was an Indian athlete. She was the third Indian woman to win an individual Gold medal at the Asian Games and the first to win it on Indian soil.
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[edit] Early life
Valsamma was born at Ottathai in Kannur district of Kerala. Nicknamed "Valsu", she started her athletics career during school days though she only took it more seriously when she moved to Mercy College, Palakkad, for further studies. Her first medal was for Kerala in the 100 metres hurdles in the Inter-University Championship in 1979.
She got a job with Southern Railway and was coached by A. K. Kutty. She created a great impression at the Inter-State Meet at Bangalore in 1981 by winning five Gold Medals, the hurdles over 100 and 400 metres in addition to the 400 metres flat and the 400m and 100m relays. That performance catapulted her into the Railway and national teams and in 1982 she became the national champion over 400-metre hurdles with a new record, which was also better than the Asian record.
[edit] Professional Athletics Career
Valsamma won the Gold medal in the 400m hurdles in an Indian and Asian record time of 58.47 seconds in front of a home crowd at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in the 1982 Asian Games. This made her the third woman athlete to win an Asian Games gold for India ,after Kamaljit Sandhu (400 metres-1974) and Geeta Zutshi (800 metres-1978).[1] She later figured in a silver medal winning 4 X 400 metres relay team. She won the Arjuna Award in 1982 and the Padma Shri in 1983 and the G. V. Raja cash award from Kerala Government.
After being eliminated early in the 400m hurdles in the Los Angeles Olympics, Valsamma began concentrating more on 100m hurdles. She won a gold in the 100m hurdles and a silver in 400m hurdles in the first National Games in 1985. She won a silver in the quarter-mile in the Malaysian Open and gold and silver in 4 x 400 metres 4 x 100 metres relay in the Asian Track & Field Meet in Delhi.
Valsamma also appeared in the Spartakiad 1983 in Moscow, the South Asian Federation (SAF) Games in Islamabad fetched her bronze in the 100 metres, a Silver in the quarter-mile and the Gold m the 4 x 400 metres relay. In the Beijing Asian Games, where she won silver medals in the 4 x 100 and the 4 x 400 metres relay races.[citation needed]
In a career spanning nearly 15 years, M.D. Valsamma took part in World Cup meets in Havana, Tokyo, London, the Asian Games editions of 1982, 86, 90 and 94 and in all the Asian Track & Field meets and SAF Games, leaving her mark in each and every competition.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Indian women also a won a gold in 4x100m relay in the 1954 Asian Games
