Target Olympic Podium Scheme: India’s landmark performances in distance running at the 2026 Asian Games have given American coach Scott Simmons fresh reason to look towards the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, with several of the country’s leading endurance athletes making significant strides under his guidance in Colorado Springs, USA.
Gulveer Singh, Seema Kumari and Sawan Barwal, all medal winners in Nagoya, have trained under Simmons at the high-altitude base in Colorado Springs, where they have benefited from sustained preparation alongside international-level distance runners.
Gulveer was among India’s standout performers at the Asian Games, competing four times in five days and returning with three medals — silver in the 10,000m and 1,500m, and bronze in the 5,000m. His performance followed another successful campaign at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where he won silver in the 10,000m and bronze in the 5,000m.
Simmons said Gulveer’s preparation had been built primarily around the 10,000m, with that training also helping him deliver in the shorter 1,500m event.
“The plan proved to be very successful,” Simmons told SAI Media on Wednesday. “We obviously prepared 100% for the 10,000m. And Gulveer gave his best challenge, ending up with the silver. We thought that was his best event, but it also prepared him for the 1500m as a byproduct.”
Gulveer’s three-medal haul in Nagoya represented another step forward from his bronze in the 10,000m at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. Simmons believes the progression has been driven in large part by consistency in training and the support available to the athletes.
The American coach recalled first observing India’s distance runners when he visited Bengaluru in early 2022. At the time, he described the discipline as a “sleeping giant”, but felt that the athletes needed sustained support and sufficient time to develop.
“We just needed the time and the support from the Indian government, from Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), from the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), and other stakeholders to give these athletes the opportunity to do the correct training, give them time to develop and continue the consistency,” Simmons, a highly regarded distance running coach in the US, said.
The Athletics Federation of India, with support from the Union sports ministry through the ACTC programme, subsequently backed an extended training stint in the United States for athletes including Gulveer. The six-month period before Nagoya allowed him to maintain continuity in Colorado Springs while training and competing alongside athletes operating at a high international level.
Simmons believes that sustained preparation has made a difference in distance running, where athletes require a longer-term approach rather than short bursts of preparation ahead of major competitions.
“I think in the past, there was no consistency. There was always a late rush to get fitness for Asian Championships and Asian Games, whereas in distance running in particular, it’s like building a house. You’re always building the house. And when you’re not building the house, then you’re tearing down the house. And Gulveer’s done such a good job of continuing one step after another after another,” said Simmons in a video conference ahead of his flight back home from Nagoya.
The progress extended beyond the track, with Sawan Barwal producing another historic performance in the men’s marathon.
Barwal won silver in Nagoya in 2:11:37, improving his own national record and ending India’s 44-year wait for an Asian Games marathon medal.
Simmons highlighted the value of Barwal training alongside established marathoners in Colorado Springs, while acknowledging that the young Indian is still developing his experience over the distance.
“He’s been able to do training with athletes on that level,” Simmons said, referring to the world-class runners in the group.
“He (Barwal) does have some struggles because he’s still young and he’s still new to the distance. But this was a very good build-up. It’ll be better the next time, for sure. He can make further gains through more marathon-specific preparation and hopes that progression can eventually lead to qualification for the Beijing World Championships.”
Seema Kumari also contributed to India’s growing distance-running medal tally in Nagoya, winning bronze in the women’s 10,000m. Her podium finish was India’s first Asian Games medal in the event since 2010.
For Simmons, the performances of the athletes reflect the benefits of having a group-based training environment where runners can learn from and push one another.
“When we all pull together and we train together, then everybody improves and everybody can get to this next level. And we saw that obviously with the Indians’ performance here in Nagoya,” said Simmons.
The results in Nagoya have now shifted attention towards the next Olympic cycle. Simmons said the Indian athletes training in Colorado Springs have developed the belief that they can meet the standards required to qualify for Los Angeles, even as those standards continue to become more demanding.
“They believe they can qualify and qualifying is more difficult than it’s ever been,” Simmons said. “But again, they’re in a training group with others that have their eyes set on it also.”
Simmons also stressed the need to start developing the next generation alongside the current crop. He called for two to four younger Indian athletes to be brought into the long-distance programme, allowing them the time and consistency required to progress to the international level.
“They believe they can qualify and qualifying is more difficult than it’s ever been,” Simmons said. “But again, they’re in a training group with others that have their eyes set on it also.”
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Article Source: IANS