Delhi, India

When Hima Das took to the track at the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships on Thursday, little did she know that she was just about 51 seconds away from getting India its first ever gold in an international track event. 

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The 18-year-old clocked 51.46s to finish ahead of Andrea Miklos of Romania and USA's Taylor Manson.

Das hails from the humble state of Assam and is known as a pre-tournament favourite. She had earlier clocked an Indian Under-20 record of 51.32 seconds to finish sixth in the Commonwealth Games 400m final in Gold Coast this April.

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Since then, she has gone onto improving her timings. She lowered the Indian U-20 record in 400m to 51.13 seconds while winning gold in the recently conducted National Inter-State Championships in Guwahati.

Hima is believed to be the one who always makes sure to have fun while training and preparing for the big day.

One of her first coaches, Nipun Das, remembers her as someone who was gifted with good stamina and love for sports. Das used to play football in her village Dhing in Assam.

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She was introduced to the world of athletics in the year 2016. In under a couple of years, Das went on to clinch a massive victory for her country. 

Das was a sprinter right from the start, one of those who would just know how to pace their way through without relying on any specific technique. Training and guidance channelised her energy and helped her to balance her races and use her stamina to run better.

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In an interview to a leading sports website, Das mentions improving her run as her ultimate goal.

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For Das, winning or losing does not matter, as far as she is relentlessly outperforming, outrunning herself.