RAIPUR: Swimmers from Karnataka completely dominated the pool at the Khelo India Tribal Games here, winning more than 20 medals. Leading the charge was Manikanta L, who clinched eight gold and one silver.The 21-year-old from Davanagere competed in the Asian Championships last year, too, and wants to do even better in the coming days. But all this couldn’t have been possible without the backing of his father, Lakshmana.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“I took up swimming after seeing my uncle, who was a national level swimmer. After that, my father did everything possible to make sure I followed my dreams including buying a pool,” said Manikanta after his successful showing at the International Swimming Pool here on Friday evening.“It was a proper 50m pool and I was about 17 years old when he bought the tender from the government and used to maintain it all by himself. But once I shifted to Bengaluru, he gave it up.”
At present, Olympian Sajan Prakash has been a huge inspiration for him.“I got to train with him on several occasions including at the Asian Championships camp last year and he has always been helpful. He always guides me regarding the nuances of training, how to manage my workload and increase lactate clearance capacity,” said Manikanta, who has been training at Basavanagudi Aquatic Centre over the past three years.
Manikanta L (centre) with his Karnataka teammates in Raipur on Friday.
Besides the Asian Championships, the MBA student at Jain College also participated in the World University Games in Germany last year and won a silver at BIMSTEC Aquatics Championship in New Delhi two years back.For now, his main target is to make the Asian Games and the Asian Age Group Championships. But for that he will have to do well at the nationals to be held in Ahmedabad in June.“To do well there, I will have to train hard and work on my strength, technique and power and, most importantly, mindset,” he added.While Manikanta remains focused on making it big, some of the other swimmers from the state sadly don’t see a career in swimming. One among them is Nidhi S, who won two silver and one bronze during the event.“I was a very dedicated swimmer from Class 3 until my second year of undergraduate studies. But when lockdown came, we realised that sport alone wouldn’t be enough and that education also needed equal focus. That’s when I started concentrating more on my studies,” said the 21-year-old, who is pursuing an MSc in Nutrition and Dietetics at Bishop Cotton Women’s College.Even Meghanjali, who impressed with four gold and two bronze, has been swimming primarily to manage her stress and isn’t looking too far ahead.For now, Karnataka’s strong showing deserves to be celebrated, but only with better government support and initiatives will more athletes be able to pursue swimming as a career and bring laurels to the country.