Student Achiever: ‘I dream of beating Michael Phelps record’

Recently, Apeejay School International, Panchsheel Park, celebrated a proud moment as Vedant Sehrawat, a class V (PYP-5) student, secured the Bronze medal in the Under-10 Boys Swimming category at the esteemed SFA Championship. This achievement reflects Vedant’s steadfast dedication and passion for sports.

Including the Bronze, Vedant has won three more medals to date taking the tally to four. He won a Gold in Breaststroke 25m (U-10) and a Silver in Backstroke 25 m (U-10) at the Defence Colony Club Gala; he also won a medal for participation at the Delhi International Swimathon.

Vedant began swimming at the exceptionally early age of six months. This helped him to transition to professional training around 2022. “I am a bit disappointed that I didn’t win the Gold. But next time, I will bring home the Gold. I also dream of setting higher records and aim to surpass the legendary Michael Phelps,” he shared with confidence.

His swimming journey is guided by his coach who has been instrumental in teaching him techniques to improve his speed and pacing. Under his guidance, Vedant has developed a particular preference for the breaststroke, a more challenging stroke that he enjoys due to its technical demands.

“I have also learnt various breathing techniques and the importance of gliding which vary depending on the stroke and distance. Through practice, I have improved my ability to coordinate my breathing and movement, essential skills for competitive swimming,” he said and added that from a young age, his parents have encouraged his swimming passion, exposing him to unconventional training environments.

“Rather than using kiddie pools, I practised in adult pools, sometimes as deep as 12 feet, which contributed to my comfort and love for swimming. I never swam in a kiddies’ pool. My parents even introduced me to open-sea swimming and snorkelling during family trips to places like Malaysia and Thailand. These experiences added to my skill set and familiarity with different aquatic environments, shaping me into a confident swimmer,” Vedant said and shared that he began his training at Raj Swimming Academy before shifting to Talkatora Stadium.

Vedant has also snorkelled in Andamans and Bali this year; he took his first surfing lesson in the open sea here and went white water rafting with us in the Ayung River, Ubud, Bali. Vedant even rode an ATV in the Ubud jungles.

Sharing an incident, he said that once his coach’s keys fell in the pool. Since he knew how to dive as deep as 12 feet, he was able to retrieve it for him. His coach was amazed at his ability and thanked him a few times. It was such a wow moment for Vedant!

While there are a few logistical and infrastructural hurdles, there is healthy competition as well that he loves. He finds his peer, Tejas, challenging. “He is from another school and this rivalry is frustrating at times. But it also fuels my motivation to improve and beat him,” he shared with a touch of humour.

“I want to thank my parents for being so supportive, providing every possible advantage to enhance my training. They are even considering adjustments to my daily routine, like early school pickups, to give me more time for practice,” he said in conclusion.