It was the summer of 2011.
A brutal sun, and strong yet friendly winds proved company as a 14-year-old Nethra Kumanan won her very first weekend sailing race at an annual summer camp held by the Tamil Nadu Sailing Association. Back then, though Nethra’s entire weekends were taken over by different sports camps, sailing quickly became dear. It was perhaps that very first race she won among other small campers that led to this instant affinity, she recalls today. “It was interesting to me that a sail, some ropes and a stick could control an entire boat. It was fun to see how the boat responded to the tiniest maneuvers that you make!” recalls Nethra over a phone call amid a much-needed recovery break back home in Chennai.
On April 26, the Chennai sailor secured India’s second Paris Olympics quota in sailing, claiming it under the Emerging Nations Program banner at the Last Chance Regatta, an Olympic qualifier, in Hyeres, France. She was the first Indian woman to qualify for the games in Tokyo 2020, and this is her second stint.
