While India’s top track and field athletes were sweating it out at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo without any success, around 1900 km away in Beidaihe, China, Anandkumar Velkumar was busy crafting his own legacy.

The 22-year-old from Chennai became India’s first world champion skater, winning the gold medal in the 1000m race at the Inline Speed Skating World Championships. He subsequently backed up that performance with another gold medal in the marathon event and also picked up a bronze medal in the 500m race to boot.