Olympian Srihari Nataraj Alleges Misbehaviour By Airline Upon Return From National Games

An Olympian and also a decorated Indian swimmer, Srihari Nataraj, alleged 'misbehaviour' by the staff of Indigo Airlines while he was returning from the National Games in Gujarat. Srihari alleged that the staff didn't just behave badly with him but also charged a hefty amount for carrying excess baggage on the flight. "I was returning from the National Games held in Gujarat, and the staff not only behaved badly but also charged us a hefty amount for excess baggage which was the medals and goodies that we athletes had won," he said in a tweet while tagging the airline.

"Honestly, the amount wasn't an issue, it's the way they treated me and my teammates. Should we leave the medals we win back at the venue?", he wrote in the second tweet.

Honestly, the amount wasn't an issue, it's the the way they treated me and my teammates.
Should we leave the medals we win back at the venue? @IndiGo6E

— Srihari Nataraj OLY (@srihari3529) October 10, 2022

Nataraj participated in the men's 100-meter freestyle swimming competition at the National Games, winning his sixth gold medal overall. He hails from Karnataka and is one of the finest swimmers in the Indian sporting spectrum.

At the National Games, Nataraj competed at the Sardar Patel Aquatics Complex in Rajkot. He set a new National Games record at the event by clocking a time of 50.41 seconds to win the yellow metal. This was Srihari's second gold medal in freestyle swimming.

As far as other top swimmers are concerned, Sajan Prakash, who has also represented India in Olympics, came in seventh in the 100m freestyle event.

Earlier, Sajan Prakash had claimed five gold, two silver and a bronze medal at the event. Other than winning two freestyle gold medals, Srihari had already won backstroke titles and had also anchored the Karnataka relay squads to two gold.