New Delhi, Sept. 16 -- The sight of a rain-drenched Gulveer Singh pushing himself hard at the Scotstoun Stadium in Glasgow during the Commonwealth Games will linger in the memory of Indian fans for long. It is not every day that an Indian long-distance runner wins silver in 10,000m and follows it up with bronze in 5,000m, in a field comprising top runners. What was captivating was how the Armyman strategised, staying close to the lead runners even when the pace was upped, and producing a fast finish entering the final bend. This is where Indian runners have often lacked. Even when they keep pace with the leading group initially, they eventually are worn out by the time the world's best shift gears to towards the end. Gulveer, who has been training at the altitude of Colorado Springs, USA with some of the world's top runners, seemed to have enough in the tank to accelerate late. In the 10,000m, Gulveer clocked 27:49.78. Four days after this commendable show, the Aligarh athlete had another brilliant race in the 5,000m where he finished with a sprint in the last 200m. The 28-year-old clocked 13:24.95. He became the first Indian to win two athletics medals in a single edition of the CWG, and only the second Indian to win a 5000m medal at CWG, after the late Hari Chand's bronze at 1978 Edmonton. "He has shown that he belongs to the top class," said high-performance coach Scott Simons of the US, under whom Gulveer has been training. "Throughout training he has shown the hard work, discipline and commitment required at the elite level. We have been working on his speed, and it was good to see him putting that effort into a high-quality race," Simons said. Over the last two years, Gulveer has been producing consistent results. He has broken national records in 5,000m and 10,000m in races outside India. The 5,000m mark is 12:59.77, while it is 27:00.22 in 10,000m. In long-distance races, however, timings do not matter as much as tactical execution in major competitions. At his US base, Gulveer has developed tactical awareness and learnt how to execute race plans. Gulveer has improved by leaps and bounds since his Diamond League debut in Doha, and the Tokyo World Championships last year where he finished 16th in 10,000m and just missed qualifying for the 5,000m final. Understanding the conditions and the tempo of the race is equally important. "Running international races is different, especially medal races where there is so much at stake. Everyone comes with their own strategy and wants to run their own race. Medal races are slow. The finish is important and it is fast. If you run fast early, you will run out of breath. So, you have to assess your capacity and go along with the field," said Gulveer, who won the 10,000m bronze at the 2023 Asiad. He walked the talk at Glasgow. His confidence stemmed from the variety of races he participated in to build endurance and speed. He has competed in the 5,000m, 10,000m, half marathon, cross-country races and even 1,500m in international events this year to prepare for the big season with two major championships. He will be a strong contender for both the 5,000m and 10,000m titles in this edition, where he is also entered in 1,500m. In the 10,000m, he is second-best this season with Japan's Mebuki Suzuki at the top with 27:20.11. Suzuki will also have the advantage of competing at home. In the 5000m too, Gulveer's best this season, 13:03.93, is a way slower than Bahrain's Birhanu Balew (12:45.70), the defending champion in 5000m and 10000m. In third and fourth place on the season's list are Japanese runners Nagiya Mori (13:14.18) and Tomonori Yamaguchi (13:16.38), both of whom will feature in the Games. At last year's Asian Championships, Gulveer won a distance double, beating Suzuki and Mori. At Aichi-Nagoya, Gulveer is primed to replicate that success and add to the Indian tally....