Satendra Singh Lohiya - Swimming with the sharks, gunning for glory!

Selfdetermination and selfconfidence go a long way For para swimmer Satendra Singh Lohiya these virtues are a way of life He has taken his struggles headon and overcame difficulties to move ahead in his career and howSatendra Singh Lohiya is not only a talented paraswimmer but a warm and humble human being as well Earlier this year Lohiya became the first paraswimmer of Asia who went on to cross the 42 km Catalina Channel of America in just 1134 hoursmidday first interacted with him in 2017 which he clearly remembers and a lot has changed for him since those three years Satendra Singh has gone on to win many laurels for the country in the field of paraswimming and has never looked backThe life beforeSatendra Singh Lohiya spoke in detail about his childhood days addressing how he was paralysed Satendra recalled Well I was born in a small village in Gata of the Bhind district in Madhya Pradesh About 23 months after birth my body underwent a reaction due to diarrhoea however there was no serious problem that cropped up at the time Years later when I was in my teens this sickness came back to haunt me It was during my school days that I began to learn swimming in a river that was located near my village However I would not call it professional swimming I did not even know that such a thing as paraswimming ever existed I swam clearly for the pure fun and excitement as well as to keep my body fit he addedLohiya wanted to pursue something more in life Although he came from a middleclass family struggling to accumulate finances he did not want to give up His family decided to sell the piece of land that they owned in order to build a home for Satendra and his siblings to bring about a change in their lives Once in Gwalior Satendras father sold off their land and purchased a house for him and his three brothers and also utilised the money for Satendras physiotherapy Satendra then worked at the sales tax department in Indore for quite a few yearsOnce a friend of Lohiya informed him about a certain professor by the name of VK Dabas who helped him travel to places such as the UK and Thailand He was also informed about an institute in Gwalior that focused on physical education of studentsLohiya said When I met VK Dabas sir he wanted to test my swimming skills and seemed quite impressed with it I began training with him for a while but in 2007 after my family was hit by yet another financial crisis I avoided attending the school A year later in 2008 I participated in the paraswimming competition in Gwalior and in 2009 I was taken to Kolkata for the nationals where I won a bronze medal Gradually I began motivating myself to think positively and focus on the solution instead of the problemFive years later in 2014 Satendra Singh received the Vikram Award which is the highest statelevel sports awards in Madhya Pradesh After that he had one goal in mind to cross the English Channel However he did not have the financial backing to pursue this given the standard of living in the UK At first when he approached the government for financial help his request was denied on grounds that he was handicapped They later asked him to compete at a swimming event in Mumbai and would sponsor him if he succeededSatendra Singh was employed as a clerk at the Registrar office located in Gwalior till December 2015 The Madhya Pradesh government later assisted him in getting a new job at the commercial tax department in May 2016He then found help in the form of Tata Trusts which supported him in his endeavour to pursue his dreams In 2017 he competed in the 30 km paraswimming in the Arabian Sea and later on the English channel However he was still promised an opportunity to try again the following yearLohiya won the gold medal for India at Olympic Swimming NSW2017 State Open Championship in Sydney of Australia In May 2017 he swam a distance of 33 km under open water sea swimming On June 24 2018 Shri Lohiya set a record with paraswimming relay team at English Channel Catalina Swimming and created history by swimming the English Channel on August 18 2019Lohiya was bestowed with the prestigious Tenzing Norgay Adventure Award2019 by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in August this year He is the firstever handicapped sportsperson in the history of sports in the country to have ever received this award which was conferred upon him by none other than President Shri Ramnath KovindSatendra Singh Lohiya winning the award Picture Courtesy Sports Authority of IndiaIn a teteatete Satendra Singh Lohiya discussed his inspiration behind swimming his favourite sportsperson his future plans some of his hobbies and more ExcerptsThe inspiration behind you pursuing swimming as a professionMy inspiration is to bring about a change in the way society thinks I want to throw light on the struggles that paraathletes face in their daily lives My true objective is to help athletes such as us to believe in themselves My aim is to succeed in what I do in order to provide a similar platform for other such athletes in futureWhat was your thought process while swimming long distance such as the English channel in such cold temperature along with sharks aroundYes I did have to acclimatise my body to suit the cold temperature But swimming is 99 per cent mind 1 per cent body I truly believe that if an individual steps up to do something good nothing bad can come of it I have always had a positive approach to life I do not think of the problem but my superpower to overcome itHe goes on to quote a rhymeJo chala gaya usse socha nahi karteJo mil gaya usse khoya nahi karteMilti hai safalta unko hiJo waqt aur halaat pe roya nahi karteWhats gone by one should not think aboutWhats gained cannot be lostSuccess is achieved by thoseWho do not fret about times and situationsTell us three important things you have learned in your career so farFirst Do not consider yourself weakSecond Do not ponder too much about the pastThird Have no regretsHe goes on to add a fourth Always remember and thank the ones who have helped you along the wayWhat are your career goals for the future Any tournaments you aim to participate inThe North Channel swim is something that I plan to pursue in August 2021 Hopefully if the coronavirus pandemic settles down we can compete in that eventWhat are the other sports that you like Do you have a favourite sportspersonYes I like watching a lot of sports like cricket tennis and many others My favourite sportsperson is Michael Phelps because he has done the unthinkable winning so many gold medals at the OlympicsHow do you plan to inspire other such paraathletes to pursue such sports as a careerI plan to open up a sports academy in future I have plans to start a YouTube channel and encourage other paraathletes through motivational speeches and proper guidance on achieving their goal In such a day and age I plan to bring the benefits of advanced technology to their doorstep to help them pursue their dreamsWhat do you like doing in your free timeI love reading books and watching movies mostly sports biopics One of my favourites is DangalSatendra Singh Lohiya has also won 12 silver and 8 bronze medals across various national competitions and many other international accolades He has also been recommended for the prestigious Padma Shri AwardKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest sports news and updates hereAlso download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updatesMidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news