Having swam nine channels across nine different countries and all that before turning 16, Aditya Raut has been there done that in long distance swimming. Still not satisfied, Aditya went on to attempt something no one in the world had ever done.
In a span of 25 days, the standard eleven student successfully completed swimming across the Swiss, Gibraltar and the English Channel. “I just wanted to do something that no one else had ever done. I am happy to achieve that,” said the Pune-based teenager.
Aditya is a young achiever in the true sense. He is the youngest person to have swam across each of the nine channels. Aditya’s talent was discovered by chance. Advised by his doctor to swim to recover from a broken leg, coach Vinay Marathe spotted his natural ability.
Since then he hasn’t looked back and has also gone on to be the youngest recipient of Shiv Chhatrapati Award for the year 2005-06, the highest accolade for sporting excellence in Maharashtra.
But it hasn’t been an easy ride for him all this while. Till date, he hasn’t been able to find a sponsor. His parents have supported him in his endeavours. “Inspite of all the awards and recognitions, there is hardly any monetary support that we have got from any sources,” says father Santosh, who works for LIC.
The last three events he participated in cost the Rauts around Rs 7.5 lakhs. They went to the Maharashtra Government for financial help but to their disappointment the state contributed only Rs25,000.
Aditya is now ready to make the transition into open water races representing India. Till that happens, he will continue to plough a lone furrow supported by his family and the dedicated support staff.
