Alex, a native of Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram district’s coastal village of Pulluvila, has been selected for the 4x400m mixed relay team. After a series of selection trials held by the AFI in Patiala on Sunday, July 4, evening, the mixed relay team was announced. Having been a mainstay in the Indian athletics team since 2019, Alex was more or less confident of securing a spot in the Olympic contingent.
The road to the Olympics hasn’t been easy for Alex, whose father is a fisherman and mother is a housewife. He would not have participated in athletics if the school he attended during class 11 and 12 – PKS Higher Secondary School in Kanjiramkulam – had not provided meals in the morning and evening.
Alex began running proper track events, such as the 100 and 200 metres, while at PKS, under the guidance of coach Pradeep Kumar. His enthusiasm for track and field was ignited when he joined the Sports Authority of India (SAI) in Thiruvananthapuram, where he received expert training and guidance from his coach, Nishad Kumar.
Alex first represented India in a tournament in Goa in 2014, where he won the bronze medal. But it wasn’t until 2019 that he cemented his place on the Indian team by competing in major events such as the Asian and World Championships for the 4x400m relay.
People in Thiruvananthapuram couldn’t contain their joy when news of Alex’s selection to the Olympic team broke, with groups and status messages flooded with congratulatory messages for the Pulluvilla athlete. Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation Arya Rajendran and MLAs VK Prasanth, G Stephen and M Vincent of the state capital’s various constituencies were among those present.
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