Confidence remains biggest challenge after historic bronze, says Tirthank Pegu

Youth Olympic bronze medallist Tirthank Pegu believes a lack of self-belief may have cost him an even higher finish in the 200m butterfly event, admitting that his mindset remains the biggest area of improvement as he targets an unprecedented Olympic final for India. “The biggest area I need to improve is my mindset. I need to become more positive and more confident in myself,” Pegu said after becoming the first Indian male swimmer to win a medal at the Youth Olympics. “I truly believe my medal could have been a different colour if I hadn’t been struggling with confidence over the past month.”

The 17-year-old from Assam secured bronze in the men’s 200m butterfly in 2:01.25, days after narrowly missing the podium in the 100m butterfly, where he finished fourth in 54.98 seconds, just 0.27 seconds adrift of bronze. The swimmer admitted that the heartbreak of narrowly missing a medal in the 100m butterfly also affected him before the 200m final. “To be honest, I was really nervous. I was focusing too much on the medal and worrying about disappointing my coach and everyone who supported me,” he said during a virtual interaction on Monday. “During the last 50m, the only thing in my head was, ‘I hope I get a medal’.”

This historic feat would not have been possible though without the influence of his late father, Kunal, a district-level amateur boxer. While Kunal wanted his son to take up boxing, Pegu’s mother was worried about injuries to his face. The youngster eventually took to swimming at the age of four, with his father becoming the driving force behind his journey. The road, however, was far from easy. “It was a struggle financially, but he never showed that struggle to me,” Pegu said. “He did everything he could for my swimming. My mother often says that my father never invested in anything else. I was his investment.”

Though his father is no longer around to celebrate the milestone, Pegu, an athlete of Inspire Institute of Sport, carries his influence with him as he looks towards the next phase of his career. Pegu’s achievement came shortly after Dhinidhi Desinghu became the first Indian swimmer to win a Youth Olympic medal, making it a landmark edition of the Games for Indian swimming. While many have described this as a breakthrough moment, Pegu believes it is the result of years of groundwork laid by earlier generations of swimmers. “I wouldn’t call it a sudden success,” he said. “Dhinidhi had already competed at the Olympics in Paris and swimmers like Sajan Prakash and Srihari Nataraj showed what was possible. They created the pathway for us.”

For Pegu, the Youth Olympics was the culmination of a year-long effort built around a single target. A large part of his development, according to the teenager, has come under coach Sandeep Sejwal. With Sejwal set to retire from coaching, the medal also carried added significance for Pegu, who has repeatedly credited his mentor for shaping him both as a swimmer and as a person. “Sandeep sir feels like family now,” Pegu said.

“He helped me not only in swimming but also in life. He taught me how elite athletes think and what it takes to compete at the highest level.” Looking ahead, Pegu also wants to improve in the 50m butterfly and the 400m individual medley. “Improving in those races will help me become better in the 200m butterfly too,” he said. With a Youth Olympic medal now around his neck, Pegu can finally savour a dream realised, one built on the sacrifices of his late father and the belief of those who helped him along the way.