Nitendra Singh Rawat is an Indian marathon runner and is a part of the Indian army. 

Born in Garur Uttarakhand on September 29, 1986, Rawat has been an Olympian in the past, competing at the 2016 Rio Olympics in the men’s marathon alongside runners Gopi T. and Kheta Ram. Lately, he has been training with army coach KC Ramu.

Rawat was a track runner, till he made the switch to marathon running in 2015. The following year, he won the South Asia Games marathon in Guwahati, Assam with a time of two hours, 15 minutes and 18 seconds. 

During the men’s final at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Rawat suffered a hamstring injury which led to a bottom-half finish in the just over 42 km race. Since then, the 35-year-old runner has been training for other important races, including the men’s marathon at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham. 

Following his cratered performance in 2016, Rawat spent much of his time training to regain his lost form. He pulled out of the 2017 London World Athletics Championships citing issues with his physical health. In 2018 and 2019, he attended the London Marathon and the  2019 Doha World Athletics Championships respectively. 

When the pandemic hit, Rawat spent much of his time gearing up for the 2021 Boston Marathon where he finished 31st, in a highly competitive field which was dominated by Kenyans. He crossed the finish line with a time of two hours and 22 minutes. 

Rawat’s inclusion in the Commonwealth Games squad is a fortunate one for him. The Indian contingent has a 36 member squad and his inclusion is likely to raise eyebrows considering India does not have a strong record of marathon running. 

In a conversation with Sportskeeda, Rawat said, “Racing on the streets of Birmingham will be the best opportunity for me to redeem myself as there have been frustrating times in the past due to injuries.”