PT Usha - Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha to use her full name - is one of India's greatest athletes, often called the country's "queen of track and field". A graceful sprinter with long strides, she dominated Asian track-and-field events for most of the 1980s, winning 23 medals in all, 14 of which were gold. She was a crowd favourite wherever she raced.
Long after her successful career as an athlete, PT Usha was elected as the president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) in 2022 at the age of 58. She is the first woman president of the IOA in its 95-year history and the first Olympian appointed as IOA president. Born in the village of Kuttali in Kerala, PT Usha studied in nearby Payyoli - which later gave rise to her nickname ‘The Payyoli Express’ - and her natural talent was discovered when she was nine.
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