Vizag swimmer wins laurels for the country in international competitions

The sporting talent from Vizag is scaling newer heights with each passing day. The latest addition to the proud list of the city’s sportspersons is swimmer Grandhi Ravi Teja. The youngster has won laurels for the country in many international swimming championships. Yo! Vizag interacted with him to find out more.

The Start

Born in a lower-middle-class family in Vizag, Ravi’s swimming journey started when he was 12 years old. “I used to attend the summer coaching camp at the Aqua Sports Complex. I won my first gold on Independence Day in a local event,” he shares.

Inspiration

Watching videos of Olympic events played a key in inspiring him for bigger things. His seniors, who have represented the country in different international competitions, stood as the other influencers.” The walls at my pool bear the pictures of my seniors and I always dreamt of representing the nation like them,” he says.

Accolades

Ravi participated in an International Competition in Dubai and secured the first place. He even represented the country in Indo-Kazak Masters Swimming Competition in February 2018 and won 4 gold and 2 silver medals.

In the recently concluded Asian Pacific Master Games in Malaysia, Ravi won 1 gold and 2 bronze medals for the country. He secured the first place in 4×50 meters mixed relay and third place in 100 meters and 50 meters Breaststroke. Until now, the swimmer has won 6 golds, 2 silver and 2 bronze across the 10 international events in which he took part.

Ultimate Goal

Raviteja’s main goal is to participate and win a medal for the country in the World Master Championship in South Korea in August 2019 and World Master Games in 2021 in China.