Jaipur:
Olympian and this year's Arjuna awardee swimmer Rehan Poncha says foreign exposure has helped him figure out his shortcomings and he is steadily raising his standard for the tough international competition.
"The training at Los Angles made me realise that Indian swimmers need more competitions of high standards. I was training with other world class swimmers and could feel that they have better anabolic capacity which stems out of competing under heavy load," Poncha said.
"I could improve because while taking load I took part in weekend competitions. The swimmers of top nations get this opportunity right from their childhood so they are hardened and more tuned to the heavy loads.
"The 'super compensation' or taking rest between heavy loads also does a lot of good. See swimmers like Michael Phelps who take super compensation after say 8 or 9 high standard competitions but we don't get that opportunity because of the lack of such high level competition," he explained.
Poncha said Indian swimmers are not as well-built as their international counterparts.
"We also lack in certain biological aspects. I m not citing it as an excuse but the top swimmers are big and strong. I hope few of our boys would qualify for the finals in their respective events at the Delhi CWG. It would a world class standard at Delhi CWG so it would be a big achievement," said Poncha, who would swim in butterfly, individual medley and also in backstroke.
Poncha said he is aiming for a top-five finish in the Commonwealth Games.
"My best chance is the 200m butterfly and I aim to finish among the top five. Beyond CWG and Asian Games, my aim is to qualify for the London Olympics in 2012," he said.
The swimmer, who is here to participate in the Senior National Aquatic championship, said he would have to skip some events for attending the National Sports Awards where he would be conferred with the Arjuna award in Delhi.
"Arjuna Award is a reward for my hard work and I don't mind losing my title of 'Best Swimmer' here which I have been bagging for the past few years. I will have to miss a few events here because of the prize distribution ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan but it is a dream come true for me.
"I have put in a lot of effort in the last 15 years. The feeling is similar to the one after clinching an Olympics berth," said Poncha, who has been training at Southern California in the United States under coach David Clark Salo ahead of the Commonwealth and Asian Games.