Thiruvananthapuram makes a big splash at State School Sports Meet

Thiruvananthapuram emerged as the overall champion in the aquatic events of the State School Sports Meet, garnering 649 points to finish way ahead of Thrissur (149 ponts) and Ernakulam (133) in the points table.

Thiruvananthapuram’s success could be attributed to the splendid performance from trainees of Glenmark Aquatic Foundation (GAF) which is operating from SAI-LNCPE, Kariyavattom.

The GAF is a not-for-profit initiative of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Limited dedicated to promote competitive swimming in India. The SAI-GAF centre became operational in November 2021 and since then has been producing a clutch of champions who have made their mark at national level.

At the B.R. Ambedkar Aquatic Centre, the GAF trainees won 14 gold medals, 15 silver and five bronze medals to boost Thiruvananthapuram’s medal tally. The medal winners included triple gold medallist and triple record holder Aajushi Avantika, triple gold medallists Mogam Theerdu Samdev and Mogam Yagna Sai, Kasthubh Nath, R.B. Bhagya Krishna and double gold medallist Vinayak S. Kumar.

The GAF trainees were instrumental in MVHSS Thundathil, winning the best school title with 118 points for the second consecutive year.

Aajushi Avantika triple gold medalist and triple record holder in school games.

“The trainees were chosen after all-India trials and they were free to choose the centre for their training. We provide world-class training facilities and take care of their education. The students can opt for the syllabus of their choice. Most of them opted for State syllabus and were attached to MVHSS Thundathil and the school management was very supportive to this initiative,’’ said GAF coach Jibin Abraham, coach. For the last two years, the presence of GAF trainees, especially those from other States, has improved the standard of swimming competition in the School Games. The SAI-GAF trainees have also made their presence felt in Khelo India games. Thirteen swimmers from the centre have qualified for the November School Nationals and will be hoping to create a big ripple there.