Hyderabad’s Shagun Sharma wins Goa open water gold
HYDERABAD: A 10-year-old swimmer from Hyderabad has overcome fear of deep waters to win medals in open sea competitions. Shagun Sharma from Gachibowli recently secured a gold medal in the 1 km category at the Goa Sea Pride 202655 Invitational National Open Water Swimming Championship.
She said she recalled her father and coach’s advice “never be afraid” while swimming against strong sea waves to reach the finish.
Early training begins at four years
Shagun is studying in Class VI. Her father, Swapnil Sharma, is a private employee and her mother, Dubey, is a homemaker. At age four, her father noticed her interest while she played in a swimming pool and enrolled her for training at the Gachibowli stadium.
She trained under coach Ayush Yadav and developed her skills in competitive swimming.
Medals across districts and states
She first competed in 2023 at a Hyderabad district-level event and won gold in the freestyle category. Since then, she has taken part in district and state competitions in 50 m, 100 m, backstroke and freestyle events, winning over 45 medals.
Apart from swimming, she also practises taekwondo. In 2025, she won a bronze medal at a national-level taekwondo championship held in Mumbai under the International Schools Sports Organisation.
Shagun said her goal is to win a medal at the Olympics.
