Jiya created history in 2022 by swimming across the Palk Strait
The English Channel and Indian para swimmers have always shared a special relationship. This morning, Indians woke up to the news of 16-year-old Jiya Rai, a para swimmer with autism spectrum disorder, who conquered the English channel.
Starting from Abbot's Cliff on the coast of England and finishing at Pointe de la Courte-Dune in France in 17 hours and 25 minutes, covering a distance of 34-kilometre, Rai became the fastest and the youngest para swimmer to complete the daunting task.
Two years ago, Jiya created another history by swimming across the Palk Strait and participating in the 1,100-kilometre relay from Mumbai to Goa. Her fearless achievements have earned her a name in the Asian and India Book of Records.
@SwimmerJiya does it again!
— Western Naval Command (@IN_WNC) July 29, 2024
All personnel of WNC convey their heartiest congratulations to Ms Jiya Rai for becoming the world's youngest and fastest female para swimmer to successfully swim solo across the English Channel.@SpokespersonMoD@MoHFW_INDIA@HQ_IDS_India https://t.co/38gFKSrFtf pic.twitter.com/ECh6zmrzRF
The recently received news gives us an opportune moment to recall the time when another Indian para swimmer became the first Asian to cross the English Channel.
On June 24, 2018, Satendra Singh Lohiya made history by swimming across the English Channel as part of the relay team, which included four para swimmers from India for the first time: Chetan Raut (Maharashtra), Rimo Saha (Bengal), and Jagdish Chandra (Rajasthan). He successfully completed the swim in 12 hours and 26 minutes.
Lohiya's success earned him numerous awards such as the 2019 Tenzing Norgay Adventure Award, the Vikram Award (highest state sports honorary of Madhya Pradesh) and also the Padma Shri award, one of the top civilian awards given to the citizens of India.
Meet Shri Satendra Singh Lohia, a trailblazing para-swimmer and a history-maker honoured with the prestigious Padma Shri for his remarkable contributions to sports.
— #TransformingIndia (@transformIndia) May 2, 2024
Watch the video of his journey as he defies the odds and becomes the first Asian para-athlete to conquer the… pic.twitter.com/7OC6iDxA3H
In November 2022, at the XXII National Paralympic Swimming Championship held in Guwahati, Assam, Lohiya clinched one gold and one silver. In 2022, he also swam with a six-member relay team to cover the 36-kilometre North Channel in Northern Ireland, for which the team was awarded two silver medals at the XXI National Paralympic Swimming Championship held in Udaipur.
Some of Lohiya's other accomplishments include touching Catalina Island with the help of the Indian para relay team, which had a record time of 11 hours and 34 minutes in 2019. Lohiya also grabbed medals across competitions such as the XVII National Paralympic Swimming Championship, State Open Championship etc.
Shifting focus back on Jiya Rai, the 16-year-old is on the mission to become the world's first and youngest para swimmer to swim the seven oceans of the world. Her exploits may be new to those who are not well-versed with swimming in the world of sports but Jiya’s name is known to Prime Minister Narendra Modi who praised her during his ‘Mann ki Baat’ episode aired on February 18, 2021.
