As soon as Virdhawal Khade touched the wall to pip India’s upcoming swimming sensation Srihari Nataraj for the 50m freestyle gold in the 37th National Games on Tuesday night, the 32-year-old Maharashtra swimmer could not stop himself from pumping the air with gusto.
It was quite clear from the celebration that the gold medal-winning performance meant something more for the man who became the youngest Indian swimmer to qualify for the Olympic Games back in 2008. He had then ended India’s 24-year wait for a swimming medal at the Asian Games in 2010 with a bronze in the 50m butterfly.
Khade, popularly known as Veer on the swimming circuit, revealed that the National Games are most likely to be his last outing as a competitive swimmer in India, and he wanted to end things on a high.
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