Mumbai, Sep 24 (IANS) Triple Olympic Gold medal winner and five-time world record holding woman swimmer Stephanie Rice on Tuesday announced opening a swimming academy in India, with a goal to guide Indian swimmers towards a podium finish in the 2028 Olympics. Rice was recently inducted as an Athlete Member of The Sport Australia Hall of Fame, one of the highest honours that can be bestowed in Australian sport.

"There are very talented swimmers in India. I believe that all that is standing between them and a medal at the Olympics is world class training. As a swimmer, I appreciate the immense contribution of good coaching to my own performances, and want to make available the fruits of my own experience, knowledge and training, to others," said the swimmer, who has interacted closely with leading swimmers in India, and plans to open the academy in association with her coach Michael Bohl.

Stephanie has a special relationship with India as she received a huge amount of support during her swimming career from Indian fans and media. "It's one of the reasons I'm extremely passionate about being able to share my skills and knowledge with India," she added.

Talking about the academy, Stephanie said: "The plan is to have Stephanie Rice Swimming Academy (SRSA) set out of any city that has a facility that covers the needs of the academy and is also equally excited about the possibility of producing an Olympic Medallist. I will be working personally with the athlete for 3-4 months which will spread out over the whole year. Some years may be more and others slightly less. I want all the athletes in my academy to know me personally and to be able to confide in
me. That trust is only built over time so I will be with them as often as I can."

The academy will focus primary energy on elite swimmers, who are 13+ years of age and who are already training at a club.

--IANS kk/bg