India, June 24 -- A 15-year-old canoeing athlete, who recently qualified for the national championships, drowned during a practice session in a village pond in Karontha in Rohtak district.

The deceased, identified as Maya Dhankar, was a resident of Karontha and a rising talent in junior canoeing. According to her family, Maya had been undergoing swimming and canoeing training for the past year at the pond, which functions as a local training hub under the Haryana government's Khel Nursery Scheme, run by international medallist and coach Pooja Dhankar.

The incident occurred on Monday evening when Maya arrived at the pond around 5.30pm for her routine drills. After completing her canoeing practice, she attempted to swim across the water b...