The saying ‘desperate times, desperate measures’ has come to life in the flood-hit Karnataka where Boxer Nishan Kadam swam 2.5 kilometres to win a silver medal at state-level boxing championship.

The 19-year-old boxer was eagerly waiting for the day when he would catch a train to Bengaluru for the competition. But when the heavy rains battered Mannur village in Belgaum district, road and rail transport were totally cut-off. He had also not been able to attend the practice sessions due to incessant rains. But his spirit to fight at the championship was undeterred.

Team manager Gajendra S Tripathi told the Times of India, “Since it is risky to travel, many parents didn’t allow their kids to come. He told us he would swim across so we arranged to pick him up from the nearest motorable road.” After swimming for 2.5 kilometres in the floodwaters along with his father, Nishan joined his team-mates who then took a nearby main road to reach Bengaluru.

Tripathi further added that Nishan’s performance have made the competition special as he bagged the silver after all the hardship. Confident Nishan told the newspaper, “This time I won Silver, next time I will win gold.”

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