Setting Sails, Seeing Success

UST as Shreya Krishna Lakshminarayanan was returning from Langkawi, along with her Indian sailing teammates, midway through the air, the cabin crew made an announcement. They congratulated the entire team for their success at the Langkawi International Regatta and read out the names of every sailor, including that of Shreya, with the entire flight full of passengers applauding.

- GOMESH S

The teenager, however, missed it as she was fast asleep in her seat. "Oh, that was super nice," laughs Shreya. "Honestly, I kind of missed that because I was fast asleep on the flight because I was jet-lagged, but thankfully everyone took a video so I could hear it and listen to it once I was awake. The fact that our own country looks at us and actually identifies our achievements, it was very touching," she adds.

Shreya came first among the girls and fourth overall at the event earlier this week. In fact, it was her ninth international podium since October 2023. It has been that kind of a year for Shreya. She started her 2024 with a girls' silver at Sail India in Mumbai before winning gold in Malaysia. Even during the summer holidays, she went to Europe to train with the much-revered coach Simone Ricci.

"The conditions were super tough; it was super challenging. He just taught me new techniques of the way the Europeans sail and that's the way I gained more experience," she recalls.