![\"From](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-133196729,imgsize-62360,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/ashish-yadav-wins-javelin-silver-at-world-u20-championships.jpg\" "\\"Ashish")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhile most of India waits for rains, Ashish Yadav<\/a> would wait for it to stop.Because, during monsoons the village pond would swell up and the 19-year-old would then begin the long wait for summer when the pond would dry up and he would obtain his \u2018training ground\u2019.\u201cHurling the wooden pole in the village pond was exciting,\u201d the Mirzapur village resident tells TOI<\/span>. In summers, the dried pond bed \u2014 benthic zone, for the more scientifically inclined \u2014 would become an ideal place to test his skills. In the rainy season, young Ashish searched for an empty field since the Uttar Pradesh village had no proper ground to practise. Dry ponds became his training ground, and a wooden pole served as a javelin.Last week, in Eugene, Oregon, a far cry from the makeshift practice \u2018grounds\u2019 of his village, all those hardships bore fruit with Yadav\u2019s 74.09m effort fetching him silver in the men\u2019s javelin at the U20 World Athletics Championships. The effort ended India\u2019s 10-year wait for a medal since Neeraj Chopra<\/a>\u2019s historic gold in 2016 at Bydgoszcz, which had crowned him the country\u2019s first world U20 champion.\u201cIt was my first global competition and I emerged victorious. This silver medal is like gold for me,\u201d said Yadav, who secured the medal with his third attempt. South Africa\u2019s Jan-Hendrik Heymans won gold with 80.50m, while Dominica\u2019s Addison James took bronze with 73.89m.Yadav, along with other two medal winners, Basant Kumar Meghwal (men\u2019s high jump) and Shahnavaz Khan (men\u2019s long jump), were felicitated by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) at its headquarters here on Wednesday.\u201cThis medal has also provided me with a healing touch. I had finished fourth at the Asian U20 meet in Hong Kong and was disappointed. I was hurting from inside. I was hungrier for a medal than my rivals,\u201d he added.The youngster\u2019s love for javelin began when his uncle Dharamraj Yadav, a former national-level discus thrower, urged him to find something productive in his life. \u201cI used to play with village children and didn\u2019t focus on classes and school. That was the time I started javelin throw,\u201d he recalled. Those village contests sharpened his competitive spirit. \u201cWho will throw the furthest was the mantra of each of the students,\u201d he said.Money was tight, and Yadav, the second son of a small farmer, grew up in a family of modest means. His father sold milk at home, while his elder brother still works on farms, and his younger brother is in school. \u201cIt was tough growing up with limited means of income. But my father and entire family supported me and encouraged me to pursue sports.\u201dA major change came in 2025, when Yadav shifted to the SAI centre in Hisar. Structured training, equipment, nutrition and injury management transformed his approach. \u201cI learned a new throwing technique. I also learned injury management. There was a proper diet.\u201dYadav\u2019s personal best is 74.49m, which he achieved at the Indian Open Throws competition in Patiala earlier this year. Now, he has bigger ambitions — to breach the 80m-mark. \u201cI have to stay healthy to achieve new goals in the coming months and not rest on my laurels. My goal is to work hard and climb up the ladder step by step. I want to get to the 80m,\u201d he said.<\/div>\n