Vithya Ramraj breaks PT Usha's record, wins Asian Games 400m hurdles bronze

Vithya Ramraj has finally broken one of the longest-standing records in Indian athletics, surpassing PT Usha’s 42-year-old national mark in the women’s 400m hurdles at the Asian Games 2026. The 28-year-old clocked 54.75 seconds in Nagoya to win bronze and, in the process, put her name ahead of one of Indian sport’s most enduring benchmarks.

Usha had set the record of 55.42 seconds at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, and it remained untouched for



more than four decades. Vithya had already come close to rewriting the mark when she equalled 55.42 seconds at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, but Monday’s run finally gave her the outright record.

The timing was also a personal best for Vithya and earned her a second medal in Nagoya. She had helped India win silver in the mixed 4x400m relay earlier in the Games, producing a strong anchor leg as the Indian quartet finished second.