Maana Patel of India became the first female from the country and only the third Indian swimmer to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics 2021 on Friday. Patel, a backstroke swimmer from Ahmedabad, joins Srihari Nataraj and Sajan Prakash as a direct entry. Kiren Rijiju, the Minister of Sports, confirmed the news.
“Backstroke swimmer Maana Patel has become the 1st female and 3rd Indian swimmer to qualify for #Tokyo2020. I congratulate Maana, who qualified through Universality Quota. Well done!!,” Kiren Rijiju tweeted.
Backstroke swimmer Maana Patel has become the 1st female and 3rd Indian swimmer to qualify for #Tokyo2020. I congratulate Maana, who qualified through Universality Quota. Well done!! pic.twitter.com/LBHup0F7RK
— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) July 2, 2021
21-year-old Maana Patel is a decorated athlete who has also won gold medals in the National Games in the 50-meter backstroke and the 200-meter backstroke. At the 60th National School Games (2015), she also won gold in the 100-metre backstroke, breaking the national record.
Patel was chosen for the Olympic Gold Quest in 2015, the first time a swimmer has been roped in. Patel won three gold medals at the 72nd Senior National Aquatic Championships three years later, in 2018. Patel won all three backstroke events at the Senior Nationals in Thiruvananthapuram in 2018.
Maana Patel was announced as one of the nominees for the Universality Places for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 by the Swimming Federation of India (SFI) in June. The nominations were forwarded to FINA by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on June 20.
