Pool princess: A V Jayaveena wants to rule the pool in Olympics With a popular actor for a father, a teenage girl would be forgiven for dreaming of making it big in tinseltown. But A V Jayaveena has dreams of a different kind: She wants to rule the pool in the Olympics, like her idol Michael Phelps.
Fourteen-year-old Jayaveena, daughter of actor Thalaivasal Vijay, is the reigning junior national girls swimming champion. It is a crown she shared with a swimmer from Maharashtra after winning four gold medals at the junior national aquatic championship held in the city last month.
Three of her gold medals were national records that brought her into the limelight as one of the country's most promising prospects. As a three-year-old , Jayaveena would accompany her brother to his swimming classes.
Little did she know that one day be champion swimmer. "My brother Jaywant used to attend swimming classes in Nungambakkam. I was fascinated by the pool and would always want to join him. My parents gave in and enrolled me in a camp and that's how it all started," said the soft-spoken Class 9 student of Chettinad Vidyashram.
Jayaveena's love affair with swimming may have started when she was very young, but it was in 2008, she began swimming competitively under the tutelage of B Girish, head coach of the Turtles swim school.
"When I saw her for the first time she was very raw. The talent was obvious but she needed to work on a lot of aspects. Through hard work and dedication she has developed into a fine swimmer," said Girish.
"Her performance at the National Games in 2011 was a turning point." Watching the Olympics on television has only strengthened her ambition to represent the country at the highest level. "Every time I watch an event, I get inspired.
The problem was that most of the big races were telecast late at night in India so it was difficult for me to watch all of them with my training and school to attend. I just couldn't miss the 200m breast stroke event though," she said. Jayaveena credits her school, swimmer J Agnishwar and her family for the support they have given her. Her father says he'll always back her.
"As a parent I have always believed that children should make a career out of what they enjoy. Jayaveena is still young and enjoys her swimming. But in the future if she decides to pursue something else, I will not stand in her way," Vijay said.