India’s Sajan Prakash makes history by becoming country’s first swimmer to breach Olympic qualification mark
ROME: Sajan Prakash made history by becoming the first Indian swimmer to qualify for the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Sajan will compete in the 200m butterfly event. This is the first time an Indian swimmer has qualified directly for the Olympics.
Sajan from Kerala made history as he broke the A-Standard time at the Sette Colli Trophy Championship in Rome, Italy. The qualifying cut-off time for the men’s 200m butterfly event was 1 minute 56.48 seconds. Sajan finished in 1:56:38, 10 milliseconds earlier than the cut-off time, and thus qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, which commence next month.
The 27-year-old smashed his own national record in the Belgrade swimming contest last week. Sajan has already stunned his audience with numerous outstanding performances, including winning nine medals at the 2015 National Games in Kerala.
“I have worked very hard for this, and I was confident with the way I had trained. This was my last chance, and I knew I had to do it here. I had come so close to the qualifying mark in the previous meets, but my Coach Pradeep Sir and I planned my tapering in such a way that I would peak at these two events in Serbia and Rome,” Sajan said. (Reports PTI)
“I am grateful to all the support I have received from SFI, SAI and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS). I believed in myself and my Coach Pradeep Kumar. Pradeep Sir was the anchor and I owe this to him. I knew I had it in me, and I am glad I achieved it,” he added.
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