With the Commonwealth Games less than 20 days away, Gagan A. P. is focused on the job at hand. For an 18-year-old, Gagan’s interest distinctively starts and ends with swimming and it is no surprise that the talented Bengaluru lad will be seen in action at the Delhi Games.
Gagan, who won four gold and one silver medal in the recently concluded Senior National Aquatics Championship at Jaipur, will take part in 1500M and 400M freestyle events. And like other Indian swimmers, he too is training hard at the national camp in Delhi. “I am very excited as this is my first big event of my career. I am preparing very hard for this event and hopefully I will do well in front of the home crowd,” says Gagan, a second year degree student at the Jain College.
He believes the camp which is being held at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee aquatics complex, also the venue for the CWG, will help them get acclimatised to the conditions. “I think it’s an advantage as we will get used to the indoor stadium. But that won’t be enough to win medals, we will have to give our career-best performance. We just have to be positive and not be under any necessary pressure, only then will we be able to giver our best,” he noted.
Personally, Gagan is not aiming to be in the medals bracket but insists he can finish among the top-8. “The competition will be huge not just from Australian swimmers, who are going to be overwhelming favourites but also from England, Canada and South Africa. But this year has been great for me and I have done well in the Nationals, hence I am confident of finishing in the top-eight,” reckons Gagan, whose parents will be at hand.
For a swimmer who is just climbing up the ladder, the CWG should be a great experience. “It surely is. Being in the Games village and rubbing shoulders with other international swimmers will be a long lasting memory. But I want this to be just a start as I want to compete in bigger competitions and hopefully, win medals for the country one day,” adds Gagan, who idolises Russian swimming legend Alexander Popov.