Tintu Luka (born 26 April 1989) is an Indian

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete, who predominantly competes in the

middle-distance running Middle-distance running events are Track and field#Running, track races longer than Sprint (running), sprints, ranging from 500 metres up to . The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres m ...

events. Born in Valathode,

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, she is the national record holder in the women's

800 metres The 800 metres, or 800 meters (American and British English spelling differences#-re.2C -er, US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of a ...

. Luka represented India at the

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

and

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

. In addition to being the 2015 Asian Champion in the 800 meters, she has won a total of six medals at the

Asian Athletics Championships The Asian Athletics Championships is an event organized by the Asian Athletics Association. History The competition courted controversy with the IAAF when political in-fighting arose after Israel was excluded from participation in 1977. That edi ...

. Luka also competes in

sprinting Sprinting is running over a short distance at the top-most speed of the body in a limited period of time. It is used in many sports that incorporate running, typically as a way of quickly reaching a target or goal, or avoiding or catching an op ...

events including

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is ...

and the

4 × 400 metres relay The 4 × 400 metres relay or long relay is an athletics track and field, track event in which teams consist of four runners who each complete 400 metres or one lap, totaling 1600 meters. It is traditionally the final event of ...

, and was a part of the gold medal-winning relay team at the

2013 Asian Athletics Championships The 2013 Asian Athletics Championships were the 20th edition of the biennial athletics (sport), athletics competition between Asian nations. It was held at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune, India between 3–7 July. Ar ...

and the

2014 Asian Games The 2014 Asian Games (), officially known as the 17th Asian Games () and also known as Incheon 2014 (), were a pan-Asian multi-sport event held from 19 September to 4 October 2014 in Incheon, South Korea. On 17 April 2007, Incheon was awarded ...

. She is mentored by Indian Olympian P. T. Usha, and trains at the Usha School of Athletics,

Koyilandy Koyilandy (;A Survey of Kerala History, A. Shreedhara Menon)is a major town Nagar Palika, municipality and a Tehsil, taluk in Kozhikode district, Kerala on the Malabar Coast. The historical town is located right in the middle of the coast of Koz ...

, Kerala. She was awarded Arjuna award, the country's second-highest sporting honour by Government of India in 2014.

Early life and junior career

Tintu Luka was born in the small village of Valathode near Karikkottakary in

Kannur district Kannur () is one of the 14 Districts of Kerala, districts along the west coast in the state of Kerala, India. The city of Kannur is the district headquarters and gives the district its name. The old name, Cannanore, is the anglicized form of th ...

, India. Her parents are Lukka and Lissy, a state-level long jumper. She has a sister named Angel Lukka. Luka did her schooling from St. Thomas High School, Karikkottakary. In 2001, Luka joined the PT Usha School of Athletics at

, and started training under the guidance of her coach

P T Usha Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha (born 27 June 1964) is an Indian sports administrator, parliamentarian and retired track and field athlete. She was born in Koothali near Perambra in Kozhikode district, Kerala, and grew up in Payyoli. Usha ha ...

. In 2008, she bagged her first international medal in form of a silver at the Junior Asian Athletics Championships.

Performance at international level

Lukka as 277 in 2017 In 2008, Luka won a silver medal in the 800-metre race at the Asian Junior Athletics Championship in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

. At

2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, were an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth that was held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 201 ...

Luka finished in sixth place in the women's 800m with a timing of 2:01.25s.

PT Usha Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha (born 27 June 1964) is an Indian sports administrator, parliamentarian and retired track and field athlete. She was born in Koothali near Perambra in Kozhikode district, Kerala, and grew up in Payyoli. Usha ha ...

responded to this performance, saying that Tintu Luka had not been exposed to such a large crowd before and that the crowd's applause and cheering could have made her lose concentration and run faster without prior planning. Luka won the bronze medal in the women's 800 metres event of the track and field competitions at the

Asian Games 2010 The 2010 Asian Games (), officially known as the XVI Asian Games () and also known as Guangzhou 2010 (), were a regional multi-sport event held from November 12 to 27, 2010 in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China (although several events commenced ear ...

. Tintu, who had a disappointing finish in the

, led the pack right from the start, but couldn't keep pace in the last 50 metres and finished third with a timing of 2:01.36 seconds. In the Continental Cup, Croatia, 2010, Luka timed 1:59.17, to break Shiny Wilson's 15-year-old national record of 1:59.85 in the 800m event. In the second of the three semi-finals for

event at the London

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, Luka finished sixth in her heat clocking an 1:59.69 seconds her seasons best, but could not qualify for the finals. For her performance at the Summer Olympics, the Government of Kerala awarded her and will provide her with a job in a gazetted rank. On 1 October 2014 Luka won the silver medal in the 800m at the Asian Games held at

Incheon Incheon is a city located in northwestern South Korea, bordering Seoul and Gyeonggi Province to the east. Inhabited since the Neolithic, Incheon was home to just 4,700 people when it became an international port in 1883. As of February 2020, ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. She was also the part of the team that won the gold medal in the 4 X 400 m relay at the

. The team clocked 3:28:68 to break the Games Record. This is India's 4th consecutive gold in the event since 2002.

Awards and recognition

Arjuna Award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards given for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjun ...

– 2014

Competition record

References

External links

*
Tintu – a rare gem (The Hindu)Tintu Luka (USHA)DD India report on Tintu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lukka, Tintu Living people 1989 births Sportswomen from Kerala Athletes from Kerala People from Kannur district Indian female sprinters Indian female middle-distance runners Olympic athletes for India Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games athletes for India Athletes (track and field) at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2010 Asian Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Asian Games World Athletics Championships athletes for India Asian Athletics Championships winners Asian Athletics Championships medalists Recipients of the Arjuna Award Asian Games gold medalists for India Asian Games athletes for India Asian Games silver medalists for India Asian Games bronze medalists for India Medalists at the 2010 Asian Games Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Asian Games silver medalists in athletics (track and field)