Nethra Kumanan (born 21 August 1997) is an Olympian from India in the Sport of ILCA6 Women (popularly known as Laser Radial Sailing). She qualified as Olympic qualifier for the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics at the Last Chance Regatta, in Hyeres, France on 26 April 2024. She claimed the quota under the Emerging Nations Programme and acknowledged as the second to qualify from India after Vishnu Saravanan.
Early life and education Nethra Kumanan was born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Her father V. C. Kumanan is an entrepreneur who runs an IT company and her mother Sreeja Kumanan is a HR Professional.
Nethra attended Pathashaala Montessori School up to Standard 6 and studied at The School, KFI (Krishnamurti Foundation India) till Standard 10. She also attended the National Institute of Schooling (NIOS) to finish her 12th level. This helped her to stay focused on her sailing training.
Nethra has recently completed her B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from SRM University, Vadapalani campus. She is now pursuing her MBA. Earlier, she joined Anna University and took up Mechanical Engineering under the sports quota in 2017 but had to drop out after a year to prepare for the Asian Games.
Co-curricular activities In her formative years, she learnt a lot of arts and sports and won many trophies. These include Bharatanatyam which she learnt for about six years under her guru Alarmel Valli, a leading Indian Classical dancer and choreographer, a Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awardee. She was an avid arts person and has won trophies at Global Art International Competitions held in Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia in various years. She also learnt Kalaripayattu, mountain biking, tennis, skating, basketball, swimming and was also good in her academics.
She started learning to sail at a summer class in 2010 at Tamil Nadu Sailing Association's 'Summer Sailing Camp'.
Career Nethra is the first Indian woman to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics for the sailing sport. At her maiden Olympics, she finished 35th overall and was 15th in the third race of the Laser Radial category for women out of 44 participants.
Earlier in January 2020, Nethra Kumanan became the first Indian woman to win a bronze medal at the Hempel Sailing World Cup Series, in Miami, U.S.A. She has also won over 20 medals at national and international sailing championships and trained at India, Israel, Hungary, Denmark and Spain.
Nethra has represented India at the Asian Games in 2014 in South Korea and in 2018 in Jakarta where she finished seventh and fifth respectively.
Past performances
Olympics RankEventYearLocation35Laser Radial2020Tokyo, Japan
World Championships RankEventYearLocation70ILCA62023Hague, Netherlands51ILCA62022Texas, USA23Laser Radial2021Mussanah, Oman66Laser Radial2019Sakaiminato, Japan78Laser Radial2018Aarhus, DEN
Asian Games RankEventYearLocation5Laser Radial2018Indonesia7Laser Radial2014S Korea
Asian Championships RankEventYearLocationGoldILCA62022Pattaya, ThailandSilverILCA62022Abu Dhabi, UAEGoldILCA62021Mussanah, Oman4Laser Radial2019Singapore, SIN
Class European Championships RankEventYearLocation56Laser Radial2020Gdansk, POL24ILCA62023Andorra, ItalyBronzeEuropa Cup2022Balatonfured, Hungary
World Cup, Princess Sophy, etc. RankEventYearLocation3Laser Radial2020Miami, FL, USA41Laser Radial2021Medemblik, NED49Laser Radial2019Genoa, ITA32ILCA62023Palma Mallorca, Spain
Class Championships Juniors RankEventYearLocation39Laser Radial2017Nieuwpoort, BELGoldLaser Radial2015ASAF Youth
References
External links