Kerala police inspector Sajan Prakash qualifies for Tokyo Olympics

NEW DELHI: Swimmer Sajan Prakash, an Armed Police Inspector in Kerala Police, has become the first Indian swimmer to qualify for Tokyo Olympics.

Sajan Prakash, a 27-year-old from Kerala made history yesterday by being the first Indian to break the  ‘A' standard of international swimming, clocking 1:56.38 in the 200m butterfly yesterday.

Kerala Police tweeted about the swimmer's achievement on its official handle and said that it was "a proud moment" for the country. What makes his achievement even more special is that over the past couple of years, Prakash battled a slipped disc in the neck.

"Historic moment in Indian Swimming !!! Sajan Prakash breaks the glass ceiling clocks 1:56.38 an Olympic qualification time. CONGRATULATIONS" the Swimming Federation of India tweeted.

 

 

The Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Kiren Rijiu congratulated Prakash and hailed him for his commitment.

"I congratulate

 

">@swim_sajan for becoming the 1st Indian swimmer to qualify for

#Tokyo2020

 

class="css-901oao css-16my406 r-poiln3 r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" style="text-transform: initial;"> as he clocks 1:56:38 in men’s 200m butterfly at the Sette Colli Trophy in Rome. It shows the commitment of our athletes towards making India proud.," minister Rijiu tweeted.

 

Prakash in a press release said that he have worked very hard for this, and he was confident with the way he had trained.

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He said he is grateful to all the support he has 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," Prakash added.

He will compete at the Tokyo Games alongside Maana Patel, who has been nominated for the Universality spots by the Swimming Federation of India.

Prakash will be competing in his second Olympics after representing India in the 2016 Rio Games.

The universality quota allows a country to send one male and one female swimmer to the Olympics if no other swimmer of the same gender qualifies or receives a FINA invitation based on his or her Olympic Selection time (B times).

He made a record by winning six gold and three silver medals in the 2015 National Games in Kerala on February 8, 2015, and became the best athlete of the Indian National Games which were held in Trivandrum.

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