On Sunday, Sajan Prakash just made the 200m butterfly final national record for India after 32 years since 1986. When he took the pool, the 24-year-old native of Idukki district in Kerala still had no clue where his maternal family was in the flooded district. His thoughts would have distracted to his home that has been washed away by floodwaters and the five members of his family who have been missing for the last three days.
"I still have no clue as to where they are and how they are," Prakash told after making the finals of the 200m butterfly. Someone at the Games Villages told him about the devastating flood. He managed to get hold of his mother but not the whole family.
Kerala is currently reeling under the worst monsoon floods in a century, with thousands displaced and many dead, but Prakash didn't let the crisis affect his performance. He has been trained for a year to compete at the Asian Games 2018. "I had several months of tough training. We used to train so much that I could not move my body. It would ache. Under the renowned coach Graham Hill I would train like a beast. I tried different things to improve as a swimmer. I guess that helped me qualify for the final," he said.
He finished at fifth position but managed to set the national recored for India 200m butterfly final.
To help people in Kerala, donation can be made through the government of Kerala-India.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com, indianexpress.com