Karnataka retains Senior National Aquatic Championships title.

Karnataka successfully defended its overall title at the 77th Senior National Aquatic Championships, concluding with a record-breaking performance in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay. The team of Prithvi M, Kartikeyan Nair, Akash Mani, and Srihari Nataraj set a new meet record, clocking 3:28.09, surpassing their own 2023 record of 3:28.16. Services' quartet finished second with 3:28.93.

In the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay, Railways’ team—Shivangi Sarma, Astha Choudhury, Kanya Nayyar, and Avantika Sudhir Chavan—broke Maharashtra’s 2023 record, finishing with a time of 4:01.83. Karnataka’s women’s team came in second with 4:02.62.

Karnataka dominated the competition, securing 17 gold, 12 silver, and four bronze medals to clinch the overall championship. Maharashtra was the runner-up with six gold, four silver, and four bronze medals. Karnataka’s Aneesh S Gowda was named men’s individual champion with four gold medals, while Hashika Ramachandra claimed the women’s individual title with three golds and one silver.

The competition saw thrilling races in various categories. In the women’s 400m individual medley, Karnataka’s Thanya Shadakshar overtook Maharashtra’s Saanvi Deshwal in the final freestyle stretch to win with a time of 5:08.10. Meanwhile, in the men’s 400m medley, Andhra Pradesh’s Mongam Theerdhu Samadev edged out Rajasthan’s Yug Chelani in the final freestyle leg, clocking 4:36.39.

The women’s 200m backstroke saw Bengal’s Soubrity Mondal win with a time of 2:21.76, while Tamil Nadu’s Nithik Nathella triumphed in the men’s 200m backstroke, finishing at 2:03.47.

Reflecting on the event, Olympian Srihari Nataraj expressed his pride in Karnataka’s performance, remarking that the state’s team would have likely won the title even without his participation.