Dharun Ayyasamy, 21, always runs with a heavy heart, knowing that his mother, a school teacher, is working hard so that he can make a name for himself and the country in athletics. Tirupur's Ayyasamy, who lost his father at the age of eight, would have made his mother proud yesterday by winning the silver medal in the men's 400m hurdles in a national record time of 48.96 seconds. In doing so, he shattered his own national mark of 49.45s, which he set at the Federation Cup this March.

Dharun, a TY Human Resources student at Alva's College of Arts at Moodabidri in Karnataka, is now keen on getting a good job to support this mother, who has had to make do with her R14,000 salary this far. "My mother has single-handedly brought us up — me and my younger sister. I do not have a job yet, since I am still in college, but I now hope to get a good job once I have completed my course. I need the finance and hope the Tamil Nadu government will think about helping me," he said.