Gujarat swimmer wins gold, 3 silvers at Asian event
Aryan, the current national champion, holds the national records 400 m, 800 m and 1,500 m freestyle events.
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Aryan Nehra with his medal. (Express File Photo)Aryan Nehra from Gujarat won a gold medal and three silver medals at the 11th Asian Age Group Aquatic Championships that concluded on Friday at New Clark City, the Philippines. These are the first international medals for the 20-year-old swimmer.
Aryan was part of the quartet that won the gold medal in the 4×200 freestyle relay in the 18-and-above age category. Besides Aryan, the India relay team included Srihari Natraj, Sajan Prakash and Anees Gowda. They clocked 7:26:64 minutes to set a new national record for India and finished at the top of the podium.
He finished second in three individual events — 400 metres (m), 800 m and 1500 m freestyle races — to win silver.
“After he won three silvers, I told him that he was swimming well and was also winning medals and that all he needed to do was change the colour of the medal. He and his teammates managed to do that by winning the 4×200 freestyle relay,” Aryan’s father Vijay Nehra, an IAS officer in the Gujarat-cadre, told The Indian Express, adding, “This performance comes as a big success for Aryan who has earlier represented India twice in the World Championships and at the Asian Games last year but had not managed to win any medals.”
Aryan, the current national champion, holds the national records 400 m, 800 m and 1,500 m freestyle events. He is training and studying at University of Florida in the US. “His next target is to qualify for the Paris Olympics and therefore, he will take part in qualification events over the next few months,” Vijay added.
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