Dhinidhi Desinghu makes history by winning 100 Free inside 57 seconds

Fifteen-year-old Dhinidhi Desinghu produced the first sub-56 second 100m Freestyle race by an Indian women in a display of resilience and focus on the fourth day of the National Aquatics Championships in the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday. She improved on her own mark, finishing in 56.78 seconds. 

It was her second National record in three days, having scripted a new mark in the 200m Freestyle on Monday. Just as she had done then, the teenaged Olympian bounced back from a reverse the previous day. She had a bronze medal in the 100m Butterfly on Sunday and a bronze in the 50m Freestyle on Tuesday.

Dhinidhi Designhu did not show any signs of being chained by thoughts that some competitors took early starts in the 50m Freestyle on Tuesday. Coming up with the best of her starts in the competition, she shot into the lead and stayed ahead of the others. Rujula S, who set the National Record in the one-lapper on Tuesday, took silver ahead of Assam’s Jahanabi Kashyap.

She turned a shade inside 27 seconds after the start  and managed not to lose much power and pace on the return leg. Yet, there was some disappointment that she had missed the cut off for the world championships by one-hundredth of a second. But knowing that she is the first Indian woman to clock a sub-57 in the women’s 100m Freestyle will give her some consolation.

Maharashtra’s Rishabh Anupam Das became the first swimmer to break a men’s Backstroke record set by Srihari Nataraj. Having finished second to the Olympian in the 50m event on Tuesday, he did not flinch in the final when up against Karnataka’s Utkarsh Santosh Patil and Tamil Nadu’s Nithik Nathella and touched home in 2:00.65. 

Benedicton Rohit added the men’s 50m Butterfly gold to his 100m Butterfly crown won on the Sunday. He fell short of Virdhawal Khade’s National record time of 24.09 by two-hundredths of a second. He had broken the meet record in the heats when he clocked 24.13 seconds and improved to 24.11 in the evening to own two of the three fastest times by an Indian in the event.

Gujarat’s Aryan Nehra beat Kushagra Rawat (Delhi) to the gold for the second day running, adding the 400m crown to the 800m title won on Tuesday. Similarly, Vihitha Nayana Loganathan (Karnataka) completed a Backstroke double when she claimed the 200m gold in 2:21.85, having won the 50m event on Tuesday.

The results (finals)

Men

800m Freestyle: 1. Aryan Nehra (Gujarat) 8:10.40; 2. Kushagra Rawat (Delhi) 8:11.89; 2. Dhakshan S (Karnataka) 8:17.42.

200m Backstroke: 1. Rishabh Anupam Das (Maharashtra) 2:00.65 (New National and Meet Record. Old NR: 2:00.84, Srihari Nataraj, Birmingham, 2022; Old MR: 2:02.29, Srihari Nataraj, Bhopal, 2019); 2. Utkarsh Santosh Patil (Karnataka) 2:00.98; 3. Nithik Nathella (Tamil Nadu) 2:03.64.

50m Butterfly: 1. Benedicton Rohit (Tamil Nadu) 24.11 seconds (New Meet Record. Old: 24.19, Virdhawal Khade, Bhopal, 2019); 2. Jananjoy Jyoti Hazarika (Assam) 24.26; 3. Sajan Prakash (Police) 24.76.

4x100m Freestyle Relay: 1. Tamil Nadu (MJ Praveen Kumar, Jashua Thomas, Adhithya Dinesh, Benedicton Rohit)3:26.26 (New Meet Record. Old: 3:28.09, Karnataka, Manglaore, 2024); 2. Karnataka 3:27.21; 3. Maharashtra 3:27.32.

Women

100m Freestyle: 1. Dhinidhi Desinghu (Karnataka) 56.78 seconds (New National and Meet records. Old NR: 57.08, Dhinidhi Desinghu, Kuala Lumpur, 2024. Old MR: 57.73, Shivangi Sarma, Guwahati, 2022); 2. Rujula S (Karnataka) 57.79; 3. Jahanabi Kashyap (Assam) 58.60.

200m Backstroke:  1. Vihitha Nayana Loganathan (Karnataka) 2:21.85; 2. Naisha (Karnataka) 2:22.95; 3. Pratyasa Ray (Odisha) 2:24.77

50m Butterfly: 1. Nina Venkatesh (Karnataka) 28.25 seconds; 2. Manavi Varma (Karnataka) and Snigdha Ghosh (Bengal) 28.55.

400m Medley: 1. Saanvi Deshwal (Maharashtra) 5:03.85; 2. Shreenithi Natesan (Tamil Nadu) 5:10.98; 3. Thanya Shadakshari (Karnataka) 5:14.82.

4x100m Freestyle Relay: 1. Karnataka (Shirin, Latisha Mandanaa, Trisha Sindhu, Dhinidhi Desinghu) 4:03.18; 2. Railways 4:05.10; 3. Maharashtra 4:05.97.