Arun Malani

Practicing on the waves of the Godavari River, Saad Mohammad Zahirali Patel is delivering stellar performances in water sports. Since taking up the sport in his 11th grade, he has competed in numerous tournaments and won a trove of medals.

Saad believes that with better infrastructure and government support, he can definitely win a medal for the country in the Asian Games.

Originally from Ahergaon, a village in the Niphad region of Maharashtra, Saad Mohammad comes from a middle-class farming family.

Like other children, his school life was filled with play and fun, but his college years proved to be a turning point for his career. In the eleventh grade, he joined the boat club affiliated with K. K. Wagh College in Pimpalgaon Baswant.

In the seven years since, he has consistently delivered impressive performances.

So far, Saad Mohammad has participated in four All India, six national competitions, one Khelo India event, and six state-level tournaments. He won a gold medal in the 500-meter category at the 2021-22 All India competition held in Chandigarh.

He followed that up with a bronze medal at the same competition in 2023-24. At the national level, his team narrowly missed a medal, finishing in fourth place.

These national competitions taught him a valuable lesson: a single tournament can teach you what hours of practice might not. This realization has driven him to participate in as many competitions as possible.

Saad Mohammad competes in four categories: Single Scull, Double Scull, Four Scull, and Mixed events. At the university level, he was awarded as “Outstanding Athlete of the year 2022-23” by the University. He has secured one gold and one bronze medal.

His journey, both for competitions and year-round training, has been arduous. In the early days, he would work in the fields in the morning before heading for practice. It was a difficult balancing act. Currently, he is in the second year of his post-graduate studies.

Saad Mohammad's day begins at 5 AM, and he does his workout, followed by practice for four hours. He then goes for practice in the evening.

Saad Mohammad points out that athletes from Maharashtra use "Sunny" or "Cargo" boats in most competitions, while others use modern "Nelo" boats.

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"If our state also upgrades our equipment, the number of medal-winning athletes will surely increase."