Shoan Ganguly finishes 28th in 400m IM as India’s Swimming Worlds campaign ends on a low

India's campaign at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships concluded on a disappointing note, with swimmer Shoan Ganguly finishing 28th in the men’s 400m individual medley on Sunday.

The 20-year-old, who had entered the championships following a record-breaking performance at the national level in June, clocked 4:30.40 in the heats. The timing was well below his personal best of 4:24.64, which he had set while clinching gold at the Nationals earlier this summer.

Competing in a high-caliber field, Ganguly fell short of making the top-eight cutoff for the final. The event was headlined by France’s Leon Marchand, a four-time Olympic champion, who secured a place in the final with a time of 4:13.19, the seventh-fastest overall.

India’s overall performance at this edition of the World Championships remained below expectations. Not a single Indian swimmer progressed beyond the preliminary heats in any event, and none managed to better their previous personal bests.

The results underline the growing gap between Indian swimmers and the world elite, despite promising performances at the domestic level earlier in the season.