Talasha ready to make a splash abroad

PANAJI: Talasha, like her idol Nisha Millet, started swimming at an early age, following her father and brother to the pool.
Just like Millet she won a few medals in her first sub-junior nationals. Thereafter, there was no looking back for this Goan.
Under the watchful eyes of chief India coach Pradip Kumar, Talasha Prabhu created ripples in the National championship."This is my most successful nationals so far," said the nation's newest water baby.
Strangely, she was more excited about her timings rather than the four gold and bronze medals that she won. "Until last year, it used to be a Herculean task to qualify for the events but now I have set new marks. I am also regarded one of the international medal prospects," disclosed Talasha.
Talasha admits that the scholarship from Dempo, and thereafter the training in Bangalore has done wonders for her swimming. She is quick to point out that the facilities at home are not too bad but the lack of quality professional coaches does become an impediment for a talented upcoming swimmer.
Having won a gold medal in the SAF Games and following that with a splendid show in the Youth Commonwealth Games, Talasha was selected for a training camp in South Africa for the 2010 Commonwealth Games and she considers that exposure as a fillip to her performances.
With a few new meet records in her pocket, Talasha is off to Singapore for a week's training from where she flies to Rome to participate in an international championship.
There will be no respite for the determined swimmer as she then moves on to Tokyo to participate in another championship before returning to Bangalore to resume her training. This time around, Talasha is high on confidence.
"Now that my timings have improved, I will be at ease and under less pressure to perform at international meets," said the upbeat Goan.