Athletics Federation of India faced flak after posting a video of Hima Das and commented about her English-speaking skills (AFI Twitter Photo) Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has issued an apology after commenting on Hima Das's English-speaking skills on Twitter. AFI had posted a video on their Twitter account after Hima's semi-final at the IAAF World Under-20 Championships in Finland two days back. "#HimaDas speking to media after her SF win at #iaaftampere2018 @iaaforg. Not so fluent in English but she gave her best there too. So proud of u #HimaDas Keep rocking & yeah,try ur best in final!," AFI had captioned the video. How Hima Das compares with PT Usha and India's other sprint queens The Federation later posted an apology but also clarified that they didn't mean to mock Hima's English but were only trying to say that the sprinter is not scared of anything and takes on all kinds of challenges, be it on the track or off it. Hima Das' parents offer prayers of gratitude as daughter creates history TWEET ! , ! , ! , ! Athletics Federation of India (@afiindia) July 13, 2018 , , DELETE ! ! , ! ! Athletics Federation of India (@afiindia) July 13, 2018 Hima captured the imagination of the world after creating history by becoming the first Indian to win gold at a track event in ongoing World Championships on Thursday. Watch Hima Das run for glory and gold at Under-20 World Athletics Congratulating Das, AFI President Adille Sumariwalla said, "Very proud of Hima for creating history. It is one of the proudest moments of my life and for Indian athletics. Congratulations to Hima and her coaches, the government and SAI for their support to AFI." Hima Das reacts after historic 400m gold: Thank you for the support, India The 18-year-old recorded a time of 51.46 seconds in the 400m race and joined the illustrious company of star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who won a gold in Poland in the last edition in 2016 in a world record effort. In fact, Das is the first Indian track athlete to have won a medal in the history of this competition. Sachin Tendulkar salutes golden girl Hima Das: Start of a new era The previous medal winners at the World Junior Championships were Seema Punia (bronze in discus in 2002) and Navjeet Kaur Dhillon (bronze in discus in 2014). Hima Das dominates Twitter trends in India after historic gold medal Das is the first Indian track athlete to have won a medal in the history of this competition. Das was the favourite to win gold as she is the U-20 season leader in this quarter-mile event. Her rise has been nothing less than meteoric as she took up serious running only last year. Das had earlier clocked an Indian U-20 record of 51.32 seconds to finish sixth in the Commonwealth Games 400m final in Gold Coast in April. Since then, she has gone on to improve her timings. She lowered the Indian U-20 record in 400m to 51.13 seconds while winning gold in the recent National Inter State Championships in Guwahati.<doc-sep>Fans took to the social networking site to express their displeasure against the AFI for using what could be construed as insensitive. The Athletics Federation of India referred to Hima Das’ “not so fluent English” after her blazing run at the World u-20 championships, attracting the ire of fans which forced the governing body to issue an apology in chaste Hindi. Hima scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold at the IAAF World U-20 Athletics Championships, claiming the top spot in the women’s 400m final race in Tampere, Finland. “#HimaDas speking to media after her SF win at #iaaftampere2018 @iaaforg Not so fluent in English but she gave her best there too. So proud of u #HimaDas Keep rocking & yeah,try ur best in final!” the AFI wrote on its twitter handle. Also read: All you need to know about Hima Das Fans took to the social networking site to express their displeasure against the AFI for using what could be construed as insensitive. Miffed, fans ridiculed the tweet and said Das was in Finland to showcase her talent in athletics and not her expertise in english language. “She has landed in Tampere for displaying her talent in track and not in English. Shame on you for what you said,” read one tweet. “She has not been featured by the IAAF for her English speaking skills,we have lot of good English speakers in India but very few who can run like her,” said another. The severe backlash prompted the AFI to issue a clarification. “We apologise to the country if our tweet hurt sentiments. We merely wanted to show that Hima is fearless whether on the track or outside. Despite being from a small village, she spoke freely with the foreign media. We apologise again to those who were offended,” translated a tweet which was posted in Hindi by the AFI.<doc-sep>Hima Das won a gold medal at the IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland. The Athletics Federation of India apologised on Twitter today after being pummelled by critics on social for a tweet about the country's newest champion Hima Das that rubbed her fans the wrong way. Posting a video of journalists interviewing Hima Das, who won India's first gold medal at an international track event on Thursday, the AFI tweeted: "Not so fluent in English but she gave her best there too." The tweet triggered an angry stream of messages from users who expressed their resentment at the organisation for highlighting that particular point. She has landed in Tampere for displaying her talent in track and not in English Its shame on you @afiindia for what you said - Rohith Ram (@Rohithp6) July 12, 2018 Why do you even need to mention not so fluent in English but, why does an athlete even need to know English. - Manuarora6699 (@Manuarora66991) July 12, 2018 Even if you mention, why did you misspell speaking as speking? . - Hari S V (@harisv1976) July 13, 2018 Hima should have replied in Hindi, there is absolutely no reason for her to speak English at all, unless except the fine English speaking gentleman/gentlemen at @afiindia wanted to look more English than the British - Vinu Abraham (@VinuLive) July 13, 2018 Who cares about her English?!!! Its just a language meant for easing communication. She speaks with with her strides. And her speech is pure poetry. Period. - Monalisa Goswami (@monalisagoswami) July 12, 2018 Bombarded by furious messages, the AFI eventually posted two tweets to apologise. "We apologise to all Indians if they were hurt by one of our tweets. The real intention was to show that our runner is undaunted in any situation - on the field or off it! Despite coming from a small town, she spoke without hesitation to foreign reporters in English! Once again we apologise to those offended, Jai Hindi!" it wrote in Hindi. The tweet was welcomed by many. No issue. You hv done nothing wrong. Insaan se misinterpretation ho hi Sakta h. Bdw thanks for this tweet - Amartya Das (@Amartya_asn_09) July 13, 2018 Good I suggest you to delete the tweet also - la la land. (@WhistleLodu) July 13, 2018 Hima Das created history by winning the gold medal in the women's 400 metre event at the IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland on Thursday. Hailed as one India's biggest sporting achievements, the medal was India's first gold at a global track event.<doc-sep>Completely unaware of the furore generated back home over an Athletics Federation of India (AFI) tweet over her lack of fluency of the English language, 18-year-old Hima Das spent a sleepless night In the Finnish city of Tampere after bagging a historic gold medal in the IAAF Under-20 World Junior Championships. "I am so happy after winning the gold medal that I have hardly slept since last night. I came to know about this controversy over the AFI tweet only in the afternoon today and feel it is a needless one anyways. AFI hasn't said anything wrong," Das told India Today in an exclusive interview Friday. "My English isn't that good, maybe just 40 per cent fine by normal standards. AFI only said that in spite of coming from a village, and the English capability that I possess, I still handled the media well. There is nothing wrong with it and I haven't felt bad at all. I am happy in fact. Everyone needs to support AFI since they are doing an excellent job, we need to reach greater heights," she added. AFI apologises as tweet over Hima Das's English skills sparks controversy Das clocked 51.46 seconds in the 400m final race and became the first Indian to win a gold medal at a track event at the world level. From President Ram Nath Kovind to Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli, and even Bollywood stars like Akshay Kumar, everyone has hailed her achievement. How Hima Das compares with PT Usha and India's other sprint queens "We have achieved something big in athletics after a long time. It is a result of everyone's blessings but seriously, I didn't believe that entire nation will celebrate my achievement and it will become so big back home. Tears of joy rolled down my face on seeing the reaction of my gold medal win this morning. It still feels like a dream to me. India is happy, people in my home state of Assam are happy, my parents back home are happy, what more can I ask for. I am feeling really good," Das stated. Hima Das' parents offer prayers of gratitude as daughter creates history Das said that she was confident of winning a medal after reaching the semi-finals as her timing was better than the rest of the bunch. She also believes that her last 100m burst in the closing stage of the race has now become a trademark feature of her career. Hima Das dominates Twitter trends in India after historic gold medal "You can call it Hima's style. I don't know what exactly happens - from the first 100 to 300m and then in the last 100m. It has happened to me in every race I have ran." Watch Hima Das run for glory and gold at Under-20 World Athletics The young athlete has certainly come a long way - starting her journey from a sleepy village in Assam's Nagaon district to becoming the toast of the nation. In fact, it was only in 2017 that Das started thinking seriously about having a career in athletics. Hima Das reacts after historic 400m gold: Thank you for the support, India "Wearing an India jersey was always my dream. But participating in the Youth World Championship in Nairobi made my belief even stronger. Before that I had seen such championships only on TV. All credit goes to Shamshul Haq Sir who spotted me first in Navodaya Vidhyalaya in Dhing and then Nipon Das Sir and Nabajit Malakar Sir who trained me in Guwahati. I got out of the village at the right time. I participated in the Open National and was selected for the India camp as my timing was good. I went to Indonesia and did well and even participated in the CWG. The journey hasn't been long and AFI has helped me and all the other athletes a lot," Das added. Sachin Tendulkar salutes golden girl Hima Das: Start of a new era It wasn't part of the original plan but Das will now be part of the Indian team which will participate in the relay race on Saturday. "Don't know if we get a gold or not but we will definitely go for a medal," she says. Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma congratulate Hima Das for historic gold With public memory generally short when it comes to achievements in track and field events, coming back home right now would have been a case of perfect timing for Das. However, it is the timing on the track which Das is bothered about as she will train with the rest of the team in the Czech Republic before boarding a Prague-Jakarta flight mid-August to participate in the Asian Games. Hima Das dominates Twitter trends in India after historic gold medal "I am training well in the Czech Republic. Everyone is calling me right now but I want to train well for the Asian Games. Hima has to do well. I want to achieve something big in the Asian Games and then return home. I will try to do well in the Asiad and better my record timing of 51.13. Country wants gold but Hima runs to better her timing. If timing is better, I will surely win a medal be it a gold or silver," Das concluded.<doc-sep>
Hima scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold at the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships, claiming the top spot in the women’s 400m final race in Tampere, Finland. (Source: PTI) Hima scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold at the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships, claiming the top spot in the women’s 400m final race in Tampere, Finland. (Source: PTI) The Athletics Federation of India on Friday put its foot in the mouth when it referred to Hima Das’ “not so fluent english” after her blazing run at the world under-20 championships, attracting the ire of fans which forced the governing body to issue an apology in chaste Hindi. The daughter of a rice farmer from a village in Assam’s Nagaon district, Hima scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold at the IAAF World Under-20 Athletics Championships, claiming the top spot in the women’s 400m final race in Tampere, Finland. “#HimaDas speking to media after her SF win at #iaaftampere2018 @iaaforg Not so fluent in English but she gave her best there too. So proud of u #HimaDas Keep rocking & yeah,try ur best in final!” the AFI wrote on its twitter handle. Fans took to the social networking site to express their displeasure against the AFI for using what could be construed as insensitive. Miffed, fans ridiculed the tweet and said Das was in Finland to showcase her talent in athletics and not her expertise in english language. “She has landed in Tampere for displaying her talent in track and not in English. Shame on you for what you said,” read one tweet. “She has not been featured by the IAAF for her English speaking skills,we have lot of good English speakers in India but very few who can run like her,” said another. The severe backlash prompted the AFI to issue a clarification. “We apologise to the country if our tweet hurt sentiments. We merely wanted to show that Hima is fearless whether on the track or outside. Despite being from a small village, she spoke freely with the foreign media. We apologise again to those who were offended,” translated a tweet which was posted in Hindi by the AFI. The 18-year-old Das, a pre-tournament favourite, clocked 51.46s to win the gold. She now joins star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who won a gold in Poland in the last edition in 2016 in a world record effort. Das is the first Indian track athlete to have won a medal in the history of this competition. The previous medal winners at the World Junior Championships were Seema Punia (bronze in discus in 2002) and Navjeet Kaur Dhillon (bronze in discus in 2014).