India will be sending one of its smallest swimming contingent to the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. In the New Delhi edition, India had fielded 20 swimmers, 10 para-swimmers and three divers. In 2014 Glasgow, the number was six. This year, it’s three: Virdhawal Khade, Sajan Prakash and Srihari Nataraj.

Swimming, as a sport, isn’t popular in India. Achievements at the global stage is absent. Prasanta Karmakar’s 50-meter freestyle (para-sport) bronze is India’s only Commonwealth medal in swimming. There isn’t much hope for a medal even this time around but the trio wants to make a statement with their performance Down Under.

Khade’s comeback trail

Sometimes being able to go about one’s routine itself is a reward here. Virdhawal Khade, at 16, became the youngest Indian swimmer to qualify for the Olympics (Beijing, 2008). At 18, he won the 50m butterfly bronze medal at the Asian Games.

Two years later, he was appointed as a revenue inspector by the Maharashtra State Government but was overlooked for the 2012 London Olympics despite achieving with the ‘B’ qualification norm as the federation decided to send Gagan Ullalmath for exposure.

Khade also missed the 2012, 2016 Olympics and the Commonwealth Games in 2014 as a knee injury, work pressure did not allow him to train for major events.

Now 26, Khade wants to win medals for himself and his country again.

The ultimate aim, he says, is to swim in Tokyo in the 2020 Olympics. But Gold Coast in April and Jakarta (for the Asian Games) in August are, for him, important stopovers before that.

Last Sunday, he won the 50m freestyle gold medal at the Singapore National Age Group Swimming Championships. Khade clocked his season best of 23.02 seconds to take home the gold. He also won a silver medal in the 50m butterfly category.

Asked about his comeback, Khade tells The Field, “It was hard but I have worked hard consistently and stayed very focused over the past few months. I am very happy to have gotten back to good form in such a short time. I would like to improve on my previous timings and win big medals for India.”

Age: 26

From: Kolhapur, Maharashtra.

Highlights: 1) In 2008, he became the youngest Indian swimmer, at 16, to qualify for the Olympics. 2) He won the 50m butterfly bronze medal in the 2010 Asian Games. 3) Holds the national record in 50m freestyle, 50m butterfly, and 100m freestyle.

Recent accomplishment: Won 50m freestyle silver at the Singapore National Age Group Swimming Championship.

Sajan’s second chance

Sajan Prakash is looking to do the same in his second Commonwealth Games. He was one of the two swimmers to represent India in the Rio Olympics. He’s in Dubai, training with coach Pradeep Kumar ahead of the Games. Last Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, he couldn’t qualify for the finals of the events he participated. This time, the Kerala swimmer is determined to do better.

Training abroad, he says, has enriched his experience. “You get some exposure. Because, you can’t keep doing the same thing again and again,” he says.

The build-up to the Games have been promising. Last September he won a silver medal at the Asian Indoor Championships. In the National Aquatics Championships in Bhopal last year, he won five golds.

Age: 24

From: Kerala.

Highlights: 1) Was one of the two Indian swimmers to participate in the Rio Olympics. 2) Won a silver for India in the 100-metre butterfly event at the Asian Indoor Games. 3) Holds the national record in the 1500m freestyle.

Recent accomplishment: Won five golds at the National Aquatics championships.

The new kid on the block

But beating the likes of Sajan and Khade to win the Best Swimmer award at the National championships was Srihari Nataraj. He won four gold medals at the event, breaking the national record in three of them. And, Srihari’s just 17.

But Srihari’s been swimming for the past 15 and a half years.

“My brother used to swim. So, my mom would take me to the pool when I was one. Then, when I was two-and-a half years, I got into the water. I’ll be in it for 15-20 minutes and then I’d get tired and fall asleep there,” he tells The Field.

When he was three, his mom put him in a summer camp. He liked swimming as an activity, and he soon found out that he was good in competition.

“The first time I went for the state trials, I qualified for the nationals. So, ever since I have been training morning and evening regularly. And then, I got a better idea of what I wanted to do, how I want to pursue my future.”

He trains in the pool for two and a half hours in the morning and works out in the gym for an hour and a half. Evening, he swims for about three hours. “I’ve been training for a long time without any break. I have been continuing the same program for the past year and a half.”

But is the 11th grader anxious about representing his country at Gold Coast?

“No pressure, no pressure,” he replies instantly. “I haven’t set any big targets. Based on the targets of 2014, if I can be in the final, that’d be great. I don’t want to think of it as a big event and then mess up my performance. So, I’ll see it as a national meet that I am regular to. Forget about others, swim as fast as I can and let’s see how it goes.”

Age: 17

From: Bengaluru, Karnataka.

Highlights: 1) Shattered three national records at the National Aquatics Championships last year. 2) Qualified for the Youth Olympics to be held in Argentina in October. 3) Won the Best Swimmer (male) award at the Nationals after getting four golds.

Recent accomplishment: Won six golds at the Khelo India school games.

To win a medal at Gold Coast, the trio has to better their best by a fair margin. But this is not just about them winning. For, as Virdhawal says, “Not enough appreciation is definitely the biggest problem for a swimmer in India. Compared to some other sports a swimmer gets much less appreciation for the same level of performance. I think if the swimmers are patient and persistent things will definitely improve.”