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September 7, 2015, Apia, Samoa: A few days following National Sports Day, when one of India's most successful Swimming Coaches - Nihar Ameen, received the Dronacharya Award, his ward Supriya Mondal did him and the nation proud by winning a silver medal at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Samoa.
18-year-old Supriya, who also represented India at the Youth Olympics in China last year, finished second in the 200m Butterfly event, completing the race 0.03 seconds behind the winner!
Supriya is scheduled to compete in the 100m Butterfly, 200m IM, and 400m IM races over the next 3 days.
Supriya, who hails from a small fishing village in Bengal, learnt to swim in a pond. A naturally gifted swimmer, his talent was spotted by Coach Nihar Ameen during the Sub-junior Nationals in 2011, where he won medals in all the Butterfly events, and in the 400m IM race. In January 2012, he was selected under the GoSports Foundation's Athlete Scholarships Programme, and relocated to Bangalore to train under Nihar Ameen.
Supriya's relocation, stay and training programme in Bangalore, and his national/international competition expenses are completely funded by the GoSports Foundation with the support of generous donors. As one of the recipients of the GoSports Foundation's scholarship grants, Supriya also receives access to top sports science expertise in areas of strength training, nutrition, physiotherapy, and recovery. He is now one of the athletes selected under the Rahul Dravid Athlete Mentorship Programme.
Since 2012, Supriya's timings have improved drastically - he has shaved off 14 seconds in the 200m Butterfly race; he currently holds the junior national record in the event.
Thrilled about Supriya's performance at the Games, Nihar Ameen said, "I am overjoyed at Supriya's performance. My team and I are extremely proud of the way he has been progressing, and his international results have been exceptional. Supriya is extremely hard-working and dedicated, and we are confident that he will continue to grow from strength to strength in the coming months."
At the GoSports Foundation, we are proud to have played a role in his journey. Deepthi Bopaiah, Marketing Director at the GoSports Foundation said, "Supriya's progress has been remarkable ever since we helped him relocate to Bangalore. He has benefited immensely from the focused swimming training programme he is undergoing at Dolphin Aquatics, as well as the holistic support he has received from Vesoma Fitness Centre for his strength training and development. We are extremely grateful to all the donors who have contributed to Supriya's career."
Watch a brief video of Supriya Mondal here:
