{"id":571948,"date":"2023-11-02T10:21:24","date_gmt":"2023-11-02T17:21:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=571948"},"modified":"2023-11-03T08:57:11","modified_gmt":"2023-11-03T15:57:11","slug":"olympian-virdhawal-khade-announces-last-event-in-india-at-national-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/olympian-virdhawal-khade-announces-last-event-in-india-at-national-games\/","title":{"rendered":"Olympian Virdhawal Khade Announces ‘Last Event in India’ at National Games"},"content":{"rendered":"

Olympian Virdhawal Khade Announces \u201cLast Event in India\u201d at National Games<\/strong><\/p>\n

Olympic swimmer Virdhawal Khade<\/strong> has this week called the National Games in India his \u201clast competitive event \u2026 in India,\u201d pointing to the end of the career of one of India\u2019s most notable swimmers.<\/p>\n

Khade stopped short of using the word \u201cretirement\u201d in interviews at the 37th National Games.<\/a> He confirmed later in an interview<\/a> with the Times of India<\/em> that he is not yet retiring but rather will, “focus on upcoming international events such as the World Championship and next year\u2019s Olympics.”<\/p>\n

His performances, winning the men\u2019s 50 butterfly and 50 freestyle, show he\u2019s still among the nation\u2019s top swimmers at age 32. But after more than 20 years in the pool \u2013 he won his first gold medal at the National Games in 2001 \u2013 the swimmer from Maharashtra cited the increasing physical cost a swimming career has exacted.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt heart, I still feel young, but the body is feeling tired now,\u201d Khade said. \u201cToo many years have gone by, and I\u2019ve swum too much in this span. I don\u2019t recover as quickly as I once used to. Earlier I could do 10 events without breaking a sweat, but even 3 events feel like a tall order now. I still enjoy the nerves I get before the race though. I don\u2019t think that feeling will ever leave me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Khade added: \u201cThis was my last event in India. You might see me again as a coach someday, but this was my last competitive race here for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

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37th National Games Resuls<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Khade made history for India when at age 16 he qualified for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. He won a heat in the 100 butterfly there, though he didn\u2019t emerge from prelims. He hasn\u2019t competed at the Olympics since.<\/p>\n
In 2010, Khade became the first Indian swimmer to medal at the Asian Games in 24 years, winning bronze in the 50 fly in Guangzhou. A nine-time South Asian Games gold medalist and 13-time medalist, the honors spanning from 2006-19, he is at the leading edge of a younger generation of talents that could put India back on the global swimming map. He swam at the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and 2018. At the former, he finished sixth in the men\u2019s 50 fly<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Khade holds national records in the men\u2019s 50 free, 100 free (dating from a super-suited 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games), the 50 fly and 100 fly.<\/p>\n
Khade is still swimming at a high level. He won the 50 free 22.82 seconds, edging out Tokyo Olympian Srihari Nataraj<\/strong>. His time took down his record from the 2015 National Games in Kerala (23.00). (His wife, Rujuta Khade,<\/strong> won the women\u2019s 50 free in 26.42, also a National Games record.)<\/p>\n
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A post shared by Maharashtra Olympic Association (@mahaolympic)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n