Uzbekistan Open: Tokyo Olympic berth eludes Srihari Nataraj & Sajan Prakash as India finish with 18 gold medals

India added three gold medals and a silver to their tally on the final day of the Uzbekistan Open Championships, even though none of the swimmers could secure a Tokyo Olympic berth. The Indian contingent finished its campaign with a combined haul of 29 medals, including 18 gold, seven silver, and four bronze.

On the last day of the competition, Tokyo Olympic-hopeful Srihari Nataraj set a new national record in the men's 50m backstroke event on his way to a second gold medal. Clocking 25.11s, the 20-year-old bettered his own previous record of 25.50s set at the 2019 World Junior Swimming competition. The win marked Srihari's third national record in two days, as he obliterated his own 100m backstroke records twice on Thursday.

Srihari Nataraj pocketed his first gold of the meet by clocking 54.07s in 100m backstroke, thus falling short of 0.22s to achieve the 'A' cut for a direct entry into the Tokyo Olympics. He had achieved the 'B' standard qualification mark by clocking 54.69s at the 2019 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships.

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India win a rich haul of three golds on the concluding day of the Tokyo Olympics qualifier

Rio Olympian Sajan Prakash continued his rich vein of form in the meet, bagging his fourth gold medal in the men's 100m butterfly category on Saturday. The gold medal-winning feats, however, were not enough for Sajan to make the 'A' cut for the Tokyo Olympics.

A day after winning the women's 100m backstroke title, Maana Patel stole the limelight once again with a top finish in the women's 50m backstroke event. She was followed by Suvana Bhaskar on the podium who won silver in a personal best time of 30.28s.

No Indian has ever achieved the 'A' cut for the Olympics. The 'B' qualification mark does not ensure a direct qualification spot. Swimmers with 'B' qualification mark can only compete at the Olympics, provided the total quota limit is not met by the end of the qualification period.

Apart from Sajan and Srihari, four other Indian swimmers, including Virdhawal Khade, Kushagra Rawat, Aryan Makhija, and Advait Page have achieved the 'B' cut for the Tokyo Olympics.

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