BAMBOLIM: One of India’s fastest swimmers and the only female from the country at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 swimming event, Maana Patel emphasised on ‘hard work and balanced diet’ as she addressed a gathering of students at Dr KB Hedgewar HS here in Goa on Saturday morning.
As part of the nation-wide ‘Meet the Champions’ programme which has seen Olympians and Paralympians visit different states’ schools, the 21-year-old Maana was in Goa and interacted with the students and advised them to follow a disciplined routine in order to reach their full potential.
“Whichever field you pursue, be it sports, art or studies; make sure you put your heart and soul into it. If you want to stand out from the crowd, it takes a lot! If you compromise on the efforts…process of training, you are not going to get there,” said Maana in her message to the children of the country.
Maana also revealed that she had taken to swimming just so that her eating habits would improve. She answered various questions from the students, who were drawn from various schools across Goa. After the interaction, Maana mingled with the students and posed for selfies.
