Srihari Nataraj wins silver at Mare Nostrum swimming

Ace India swimmer Srihari Nataraj won the silver medal in the 50 metres backstroke event at the 30th Mare Nostrum swimming tour at the Canet-en-Roussillon, France, on Saturday.

Nataraj, who competed at the Tokyo Olympics, clocked 25.50 seconds to place second, behind Hungary's Adam Jaszo, who touched the pad in 25.46s.

Scott Gibson of Great Britain finished third with a timing of 25.64s.

Nataraj's personal best in the event is 25.11s.

The 50m backstroke is a non-Olympic event. No Indian swimmer has made the cut for the Paris Games till now.

Sajan Prakash and Nataraj had made history in 2021 when they became the first two Indian swimmers to achieve the 'A' qualification mark for the Tokyo Olympics.

The Mare Nostrum Tour, which began on Saturday, is a nine-day competition conducted across three cities – Monaco, Barcelona and Canet.