From Swimming Pools to the Asia Cup: How Sheetal Bhatt Built Gujarat's Underwater Sports Movement From Scratch

Every state-level success story in Indian finswimming has a person behind it who decided to build something from nothing. In Gujarat, that person is Sheetal Bhatt — State Secretary of the Underwater Sports Association India (USAI), India's official Underwater Sports Federation, for Gujarat, and the man behind what he now calls the "Gujarat Model" for growing underwater sports at the grassroots level.

Today, Bhatt oversees a network of over 100 coaches, dozens of districts, and a pipeline of athletes that reaches all the way to the Asia Cup — a state-level success story built entirely within the structure of the Underwater Sports Federation of India. It's a journey that began just four to five years ago — and one built almost entirely from the ground up.

A New Contact, A New Direction

Bhatt's entry into underwater sports wasn't planned. Already a familiar face in Gujarat's swimming circles, he was approached by Mr.Kuldip and Mr. Mayur Patil, who introduced him to the sport. Rather than jumping in immediately, Bhatt did his homework first — meeting with them repeatedly, learning what the sport involved, and understanding where it could lead.

"I looked into everything thoroughly — what kind of game this is, what it involves," he recalls. The more he learned, the more interested he became, and he started following up and staying engaged with the Underwater Sports Association India USAI.

The turning point came when Kuldeep approached him about hosting a national tournament in Gujarat. That conversation led to a meeting, and Bhatt — along with his team — took full responsibility for organizing the national-level event. That was around 2021–22, and it marked the beginning of his career in the sport.

Building the "Gujarat Model"

Once the national tournament was behind them, Kuldeep asked Bhatt to take charge of the entire state. What followed was a methodical, self-taught effort to build a sporting structure from nothing.

Bhatt started by working through coordinators, running awareness camps for children interested in finswimming, and organizing training sessions for coaches — complete with certification. He didn't stop at organizing; he personally researched the sport in depth, studying it online and refining his own understanding before designing what he now calls the "Gujarat Model."

The approach was simple but deliberate: demonstrations first, so people understood what finswimming actually was and where it could take them, followed by dedicated camps to train children in the sport's fundamentals. Step by step, a team began to take shape.

Turning a Movement Into an Association

As the program grew, so did its needs — particularly around finance. That led to the formal creation of the Underwater Sports Association, Gujarat, giving the movement an official body and structure under the national Underwater Sports Association (India).

One name stands out in this chapter: Varun Patel, the Association's President, who Bhatt credits as instrumental to the sport's growth in the state. "He supported me a lot financially and told me openly — do what you think is right, I'm standing behind you," Bhatt says. According to him, that backing continues to this day, extending support across every district. "If he hadn't been there, finswimming wouldn't have developed this much in Gujarat. We could put in the effort, but without finance, what could we really do?"

With the association in place, Bhatt appointed district coordinators — capable, committed people who could take the sport further. His reasoning was straightforward: without coaches, there is no sport. "Coaches are the ones who can bring in children — no one else can," he says.

The Numbers Behind the Growth

Over the past few years, Bhatt has systematically built out coaching infrastructure across Gujarat's districts, running what he estimates to be 60 to 70 camps for children across the state.

That groundwork now supports:

• 100–125 coaches currently working under the association across Gujarat, training children in their own clubs, pools, and schools
• District-level tournaments that feed directly into state-level selection
• State tournaments, conducted for four consecutive years, drawing 150–200 participants each time — boys and girls, ranging from under-9 to Masters category
• A pathway that has taken athletes from district-level competition to national and international stages, including the Asia Cup, where 10 participants from Gujarat have represented the country over the last two years

"This is our four-year achievement," Bhatt says. "From the smallest district to the international level — we've made that leap."

Looking Ahead: The Next Three Years

Bhatt's ambitions for the next phase are clear and specific. He wants state-level tournament participation to grow from the current 150–200 to 300 participants, alongside continued growth in national and international representation.

What Needs to Change

Asked what he'd like to see improve in the sport at a national level, Bhatt didn't hesitate. He believes coaching development within the Underwater Sports Federation of India needs far more structure and consistency across the country.

"Right now, proper coach clinics at the India level just aren't happening the way they should," he explains. His suggestion: decentralize the process. Rather than a single national coaching clinic — which is difficult for coaches balancing full-time jobs to attend — each state should run its own sports clinics and awareness camps, tailored to local schedules and needs.

He also points to the sport's limited geographic reach. By his estimate, underwater sports are currently active in only 10 to 12 states in India. His goal: get that number to at least 20, particularly in states where the sport hasn't taken root yet but the need — and potential — clearly exists.

A Message for the Next Generation

Asked what he'd want readers around the world to take away from his story, Bhatt kept it simple:

"This is a good, new sport — something that swimming hadn't offered before. I just want more and more children to play it, and for awareness about it to keep growing."

Building India's Underwater Sports Movement, One State at a Time

Sheetal Bhatt's story is a reminder that the growth of underwater sports India isn't driven by any single national effort alone — it's built state by state, district by district, by people willing to start from nothing and stay the course. Gujarat's model, under Bhatt's leadership as State Secretary of USAI — the Underwater Sports Federation of India — now stands as a genuine blueprint for what committed grassroots leadership can achieve within the federation's national structure.

USAI, India's recognised Underwater Sports Federation, extends its appreciation to Sheetal Bhatt and the entire Gujarat team for their tireless work in building one of the strongest state-level finswimming pipelines in the country.

Stay Connected

For more stories from across India's underwater sports and finswimming community, and the latest updates from USAI's state units, keep visiting underwatersportsindia.com.