Nepal has announced a roster of 4 swimmers for the 2019 World Aquatics Championships, which will take place from July 21st-28th in Gwangju, South Korea.
Among them will be a pair of siblings, Sofia Shah and Alexander Shah. Sofia is currently a sophomore at Peppedrine University in the United States. She was born in Copenhagen to a Nepali father and Danish mother but was raised primarily in the Nepali capital of Kathmandu.
Shah is an alumnus of the FINA Road to Rio scholarship program which allowed her to train for a year in Thailand. She attended the College of William and Mary as a freshman before transferring to Pepperdine as a sophomore. In 2017, she finished 29th in both the 50 free (29.73) and 100 free (1:04.83) at Worlds.
She’s joined in the women’s events by 16-year old Gaurika Singh, who lives and trains in London. She currently holds at least 14 Nepalese Records in swimming and won 4 medals, including silver in the 200 IM, at the 2016 South Asian Games. Another 16-year old, Tisa Shakya, who was the country’s highest finisher at the 2017 World Championships (when she was only 14), is not on this year’s roster.
Of the men’s team, Shuvam Shrestha returns for 2019 after placing 68th in the 50 breaststroke (32.50) and 70 in the 100 breaststroke (1:11.34) in Budapest in 2017. He’s since dropped both of those times, including the 100 to a 1:08.94, and holds the National Record in both races.
Nepal Roster for the 2019 World Aquatics Championnships:
- Women: Gaurika Singh, Sofia Shah
- Men: Shuvam Shrestha, Alexander Shah
