Sajan Prakash Creates Three Short Course National Records in Three Days at Swimming World Cup in Tashkent

Indian swimmer Sajan Prakash delivered an outstanding performance at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup – Stop 2 in Tashkent, setting a national record in the men's 100m individual medley, establishing a new mark in the 400m individual medley and equalling the Indian record in the 200m individual medley in the 25m pool.

At 32, Sajan Prakash continues to demonstrate his ability to compete at the international level, producing a series of record-breaking performances against a field featuring established world-class swimmers. His achievements in Tashkent underline his versatility across multiple events and provide a significant boost to Indian swimming.

The three-day sequence of national-record performances is particularly notable because the individual medley demands proficiency across all four competitive strokes: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle. Success requires not only speed but also technical efficiency, controlled pacing and the ability to manage transitions between strokes.

Prakash began his record-breaking run in the men's 100m individual medley, clocking 54.50 seconds in the heats to establish a new Indian short course national record. The previous record stood at 55.50 seconds, meaning Prakash improved the national mark by exactly one second. His performance also secured him eighth place across the heats and qualification for the final, placing him among the leading swimmers in a competitive international field.

Prakash subsequently finished ninth in the final in 54.78 seconds. Although he could not improve on his qualifying time, his final appearance provided another opportunity to compete against international opposition and consolidate the progress demonstrated in the heats.

The improvement was significant because the 100m individual medley requires swimmers to transition rapidly between strokes over a relatively short distance. A one-second reduction in the national record represents a substantial gain in an event where fractions of a second can determine positions. The result also established the foundation for what would become an exceptional series of performances in Tashkent.

National record in the 400m individual medley

Prakash continued his momentum in the men's 400m individual medley, clocking 4 minutes 25.89 seconds to establish another Indian short course national record. He finished 10th in the event, but the national mark was the central achievement. The 400m individual medley places different demands on swimmers compared with the 100m event, requiring sustained endurance, efficient stroke mechanics and careful distribution of effort across four 100m segments.

The longer distance also places greater emphasis on pacing. Swimmers must balance the demands of the butterfly and breaststroke legs with the need to maintain speed through the backstroke and freestyle sections. Prakash's record therefore demonstrated his ability to deliver across events with substantially different physical and tactical requirements. Rather than relying exclusively on sprint speed, he showed that he could maintain a high level of performance in a demanding endurance event.

His 4:25.89 timing added another national milestone to an already productive international campaign.

Prakash completed his record-breaking sequence in the men's 200m individual medley, clocking 1 minute 59.80 seconds. The performance equalled the Indian short course national record previously established by Siva Sridhar in 2022. It was not a new national record, but matching the existing benchmark confirmed Prakash's consistency across all three individual medley distances.

The 200m individual medley occupies a middle ground between sprint execution and endurance management. Swimmers must maintain a strong pace across all four strokes while ensuring that technical efficiency does not deteriorate as fatigue develops. Prakash's 1:59.80 performance was therefore an important addition to his Tashkent campaign, particularly after setting the national marks in the 100m and 400m events.

Together, the three performances highlighted his versatility and his continued competitiveness in international swimming.

Prakash's participation in Tashkent extended beyond the three individual medley events. He also competed in the men's 50m freestyle, recording a personal best of 22.38 seconds to finish 25th overall among 51 swimmers in the heats. Indian swimmer Sharan Sridhara also competed in the men's 400m freestyle, finishing 18th among 31 participants with a personal-best time of 3:57.94.

These performances added to India's representation at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup, providing opportunities for the country's swimmers to test themselves against international competition. For Prakash, however, the defining feature of the meet was his repeated ability to reach new national benchmarks across different individual medley distances.

Prakash's three-day sequence represents an important achievement for Indian swimming. Establishing a national record in the 100m individual medley, setting another in the 400m event and matching the existing mark in the 200m demonstrates both versatility and consistency.

The results also underline the importance of continued international competition for Indian swimmers. Competing against high-quality fields provides opportunities to assess performance under pressure, identify technical improvements and measure progress against established benchmarks. Prakash has already demonstrated his ability to compete at major international events, including reaching the final at the Asian Games. His performances in Tashkent add another chapter to that record.

While the finishes in the individual events varied, the national records provide a clear measure of the progress achieved. For Indian swimming, the combination of new benchmarks and a record-equalling performance offers encouraging evidence of the potential for further improvement. Sajan Prakash's campaign in Tashkent was about more than individual finishing positions. 

Three days, two new national records and one equalled mark made it a memorable outing, reaffirming his status as one of India's leading swimmers and demonstrating his continued drive to push the country's performance standards forward.