Who is Vishnu Saravanan? All you need to know about the Indian sailor competing at Paris Olympics 2024
Vishnu Saravanan is a sailor, representing India at the Paris Olympics 2024. He debuted in the Olympics by qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 event and became the first Indian to qualify for sailing at the ongoing Olympics.
Saravanan finished 26th among 152 competitors from 52 countries in the ILCA7 World Championships in Adelaide to qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
Born in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, the 25-year-old comes from a sailing background. His father Ramachandran Saravanan was a sailor at the national level and his sister Ramya Saravanan has also represented India at sailing events.
His first achievement came in 2019 when he was part of the Under-21 World Championships in Croatia. Vishnu Saravanan won a bronze medal during the competition which gave a good start to his sailing career. In 2022, during the Men's dinghy ILCA7, Vishnu clinched the bronze medal for the country at the 2022 Hangzhou.
He is the second Indian sailor to qualify for multiple Olympic events. Farokh Tarapore was the first Indian to take part in sailing at the 1984, 1988, and 1992 Olympics. Vishnu is part of the men’s one-person dinghy or Laser Standard (ILCA7) category. The Laser Standard is a lightweight boat with a single mast.
Vishnu Saravanan's Medals and Achievements
After Farokh Tarapore, Vishnu has become the new hope for India in the sailing division in different international competitions. His first big event was the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and since then, he has gained the required experience to make a huge impact at the Paris Olympics 2024.
Vishnu Saravanan was a national champion from 2017 to 2023. He finished in the 20th spot at the Tokyo Olympics. However, the 25-year-old is expected to do much better in Paris.
In 2021, Vishnu clinched a silver medal in the Mussanah Open Olympic Qualifiers. That gave him the confidence to prepare for the 2024 Olympics. During the Asian Sailing Championships in Abu Dhabi, Vishnu made history by winning the gold medal for India. It was his first gold and it boosted his confidence further for bigger events.
His recent achievement was winning a bronze medal at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. After that, Vishnu secured India's first Paris 2024 Olympic quota in sailing. He was fifth among all the sailors eligible for the quota at the Paris Olympics.