Mani Arvind of Karnataka won his second gold of the meet by
scripting a new National record, clocking a time of 04:41.60 in
the Group I boys 400m individual medley, in the junior National
aquatics championship here on Friday.  The 18-year-old Arvind
erased State-mate Rehan Poncha’s time of 04:42.57 set in the
2003 Nationals.  “This gold is all the more sweet for I beat the
record of Rehan with whom I trained regularly and who even gave
me lot of tips to be a better swimmer,” said a visibly delighted
Arvind.  “It was tough this evening but I am happy with the end-
result,” says the young swimmer who till now has 24 medals in
different Nationals since 2006.  In a close contest, V.K.R.
Meenakshi of Tamil Nadu clinched gold in the girls Group I 100m
butterfly event pipping Rujuta Bhatt of Maharashtra as the jury
was forced to opt for the photo-finish.  The TN girl clocked
01:06.59 while Rujuta with 01:06.64 had to be content with the
second place.  The results (all finals):  Girls: Group I: 1500m
freestyle: 1. Aak