Rising star Hashika Ramachandra aims for Asian Games 2026; credits mother for her success

Hashika Ramachandra, the 16-year-old Bengaluru lass, training under Nataraj at Basavanagudi Aquatic Center, has created headlines with her sensational performance at the ongoing 77th Senior National Aquatic Championships 2024 in Mangaluru, Karnataka. She eclipsed the national record in the Women’s 400m Freestyle which was previously held by Richa Mishra (4:25.76) from Ranchi, by clocking 4:24.70. She has thus far won 2 golds and 1 silver in the meet and has 2 events remaining in the prestigious event.

Elated with her record winning performance, Hashika said, “I didn't even know I broke the record. I knew it was a record but I didn't know it was also the best Indian performance in this event. My competitors next to me told me the significance of the record and felt quite happy but I had to quickly shift focus on my next event.”

Hashika’s career in swimming has not been an easy one. She lost her father due to pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer when she was only eight years old.

Her mother Lata Ramachandra is a single parent and has been the backbone in Hashika’s budding career. Lata enrolled Hashika for swimming coaching to ensure that she stays fit. Talking about how her mother has ensured she has all the support she needs to grow in her career, Hashika said, “I don't really miss my father because my mother has made me feel like there's nothing missing in my life and she's taken care of me and my swimming career single-handedly for over 10 years now and I'm very grateful for the sacrifices she’s made.”

Recalling her early days in the sport, Hashika spoke about skipping a few sessions every week but eventually took the sport seriously when she took part in non-medalist meets and began winning. Since then, Hashika has gone on to make her mark on the national stage, creating a national record in the Women’s 200m Medley at the 76th National Aquatic Championships last year. She clocked a time of 2:21.15, breaking the previous record of 2:23.62 also set by Richa Mishra in 2010.

However, Hashika continues to fight the mental and physical rigors of the sport and has on occasion felt burnt out and has even contemplated if she should quit. To combat this, she has been working with sports psychologist Dr. Chaitanya for the last six months, and with Dr. Sathvick Goud for about a year before that.

“Obviously the sport is very hard. And what matters most is how you beat these everyday challenges. I had to go to a psychologist and she's helped me a lot. I didn't know I needed one, but then once I got a psychologist, it did help me a lot. Lack of self-confidence is one of the issues I have among many other things, but having a psychologist gives you another perspective on things, and it opens your mind up. It really did give me a whole different perspective and now I feel more confident. I talk to myself before my race, I was taught to do this during my sessions with the psychologist and the trick has helped immensely,” Hashika explained.

Hashika clinched another gold medal for Karnataka in the Women’s 4 x 200m Freestyle along with Shirin, Shalini R Dixit, Naisha by clocking 8:54.85 on the opening day and finished second in the Women’s 200m Medley on the second day. She aims to finish strong in the remaining events of the 77th Senior National Aquatic Championships 2024, in a bid to achieve her potential and qualify for the 2026 Asian Games.

"The aim now is to qualify for the 2026 Asian Games. The qualification mark for the Women's 400m Freestyle is 4:18 and I am at the 4:24 mark right now. I think in the I have enough time to train and cut down those 6 seconds. I also aim to participate in the 200m Individual Medley and Freestyle events," Hashika signed off.