Historic Leap: Indian Divers Bag First-Ever Asian Aquatics Medal
Bhubaneswar: India created diving history on Sunday as Indiver Sairam (18) and Willson Sing Ningthoujam (32) clinched a bronze medal in the men’s 10m synchronized platform at the 11th Asian Aquatics Championships in Ahmedabad. This is the first time Indian divers have ever stood on the podium at this continental meet.
The Results
Gold – Zhangyu Cui & Zhanhong Xu (China) – 381.75 pts
Silver – Bertrand Rhodict Lises & Enrique Harold (Malaysia) – 329.73 pts
Bronze – Indiver Sairam & Willson Sing (India) – 300.66 pts
Both Indians hail from Manipur and currently train at the Army Sports Institute, Pune. Their pairing combines youth and experience—Indiver making his senior breakthrough and Willson bringing years of diving expertise.
Coach’s Take
Australian coach Shannon Roy praised the duo’s progress:
> “We’ve worked intensively on synchronized diving—10m platform and 3m springboard—for the last six months, with training camps in Malaysia and exposure at the World Championships in Singapore. This medal is the result of that focused effort.”
Other Highlights
India’s swimming contingent also made its mark. Kushagra Rawat secured a bronze in the men’s 1500m freestyle with a time of 15:30.88, while 12 Indian swimmers reached finals, including a relay team that fought strongly for a podium.
Why It Matters
This bronze signals a new chapter for Indian diving—a sport long overshadowed by swimming. With international training, exposure, and homegrown talent from Manipur, India is beginning to emerge in arenas once dominated by China, Japan, and Malaysia.
