Gaurika Singh

February 10, 2016 , by Pragya Thapaliya, Leave your thoughts

DREAMS would like to congratulate Gaurika Singh for handing Nepal its first ever individual medal in the 12th South Asian Games. In an unprecedented achievement, the 13-year old won a silver which was preceded by three bronze medals. The feat has broken the country's 32-year wait of an individual podium finish in the regional meet.

Singh brought an end to the dry-spell pulling off a hat-trick of bronze in three different events — 400m freestyle, 100m and 200m backstroke. Her impressive run then hit the highest so far in Nepal swimming with a silver in women’s 200m individual medley at Dr Zakir Hussain Aquatics Complex. She timed 2:33.26 in the medley on her way to breaking sixth national record in the February 5-16 Games at Guwahati, India.

Singh has set national record for the 25th time in her career and has also become the first Nepali athlete to bag four medals in various events of a single discipline. Nepal’s only medal in swimming was back in 1999 during the South Asian Games, when the women’s relay team rode on luck to claim gold, after the first and second placed India and Sri Lanka were disqualified.

Born in Nepal, Singh currently lives with her family in London where she trains at the Barnet Copthall Swimming Club. The prodigy who was previously being coached by Christine Green is now training under eminent coach Rhys Gormley.

Singh has been igniting new hopes for the Nepali swimming scene since the tender age of 11. She rose to crescendo in her debut participation in Nepal at the 19th National Open Swimming Championships in 2014. The debutante left all astounded when she cruised to seven gold medals with record timing.

“There is no shortcut to real success,” the saying very much implies in Gaurika’s road to what has been a brief glory so far. The teen has been undergoing intensive training and swims for more than six hours each day. Her hard work has showed significant results as she continues to outperform herself in every other game.

Her current record in the 200m medley shows an evident and noteworthy improvement in her personal record 2:53.57 which she set during the 19th Nationals. Singh, who looks up to swimmers like Phelps and Missy Franklin, aims to represent Nepal in Asian Games and eventually in Olympics having already competed in the 2015 FINA World Championships.

It would not be stretching it too far to call her a future star. A transformation into a matured swimmer with the progression of time, she could be the next big thing in the country’s sports. Her accomplishment on the Games was not a terminus, but a milestone, as she still has a long way to go. DREAMS wishes her all the best for her journey.

(Photo: Gaurika’s Facebook profile)