“I had no clue what track even was; I had no clue what I was doing.”
That statement from 14 year-old Air Blastoff sensation Yuvraj Singh is not completely true.
The son of a former elite distance runner in his native country of India, Singh certainly knew enough to bring along a pair of running shoes and some shorts as he made his way to the Laurentian University track last June, representing Lasalle Intermediary School at the 2025 Elementary Champions Meet.
An ultra-devoted soccer player at the time, the young many who will attend Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School in September caught the eyes of many an onlooker, bursting on to the scene by winning gold in the 1500m (5:14.20) and silver in the 200m (28.08).
As luck would have it, his father (Aditya Chaudhary) was able to take some time away from work to attend the races. Also in attendance was one Robert Esmie. The beginning of something pretty darned special would be the outcome from their track-side discussions as the young phenom performed, blissfully unaware of the latent potential that was being displayed.
“That was the first time Robert watched me and it was the first time I found out who he is,” said Singh in a coffee-shop conversation this past weekend.
A decent performance in the 800m at the Royal Canadian Legion District H meet in Sudbury last summer (2:18) would give way to continued improvement, with Singh establishing new meet records last week at the Rainbow Champions gathering for both the 400m (55.42) and 800m (2:10.88*) distances.
(* this clocking is just slightly faster than the current Novice Boys high-school records in the 800m)
Athletically speaking, the past 12 months have witnessed a very significant pivot for the local talent who now has his sights set on both the 2026 Legion Nationals in Regina and the Ontario Summer Games in the Waterloo Region.
“Soccer was everything to me,” said Singh, who moved from India to the United Arab Emirates at the age of nine (and on the Canada in 2025 and Sudbury one year later), where he first was introduced in a big way to the world’s most popular sport. “I loved soccer – but in track, I could really see myself improving.”
Ultra committed to whatever sport he pursues to the point of essentially never missing a practice, the destiny of Singh’s journey might have become apparent when a last minute cancellation of a GSSC Impact workout last summer opened the door for him to attend a training session with the Air Blastoff group that same day.
Still, there were moments of doubt.
Having only competed in Sudbury previously, Singh attended a Flying Angels Track Club meet in Toronto last summer. “Everyone there is muscular, super tall and athletic,” said Singh with a smile. “I though: what am I going to do with these guys?”
Running his first ever 400m race, he circled the track in 57 seconds, placing second. If he had not realized it before, the sporting path he was to follow suddenly became more clear.
“My dad used to be a long distance runner,” said Singh, noting that, to the best of his memory, a 10km time of 33 minutes or so was definitely in the wheelhouse of the man with whom he is sharing pretty much every step of this voyage. “I think it was in my genes that I had to do running.”
On the grand scale that is the realm of middle distance running, Yuvraj Singh is only just cutting his teeth. But at least for the moment, the 800m slides in as his “sweet spot”.
“I can keep the 800m pace for a longer time – but I am still pretty good at the 400m,” he said, noting that he is constantly tapping into the advice and knowledge of both coach Robert Esmie as well as K.C. Gallo, an accomplished distance runner who attended Mercyhurst University on a women’s hockey scholarship some years ago.
“My coaches tell me my splits and it’s just me and the clock, trying to run a 30-second split for every 200 metres.”
It could be argued, however, that he receives even better advice from his father.
“Always remember the people around you – and stay humble, no matter what,” said Singh.
Words to live by as the development of yet another Sudbury track and field project leads into the highly formative stretch of secondary schooling athletics.
