World body FINA selected Karnataka swimmer Gagan Ulalmath to participate in the men’s 1,500m freestyle.u00a0The move came as a surprise to many with Ulalmath failing to get close to any qualification standard. While other well known swimmers like Viradhwal Khade (100m freestyle), Sandeep Sejwal (100m and 200m breaststroke), Aaron D’souza (200m freestyle) and Saurabh Sangvekar (1,500m freestyle), all had ‘B’ standard, also called as Olympic Selection Timing (OST).

Gagan Ulalmath during the men’s 800m freestyle swimming event in Shanghai last year. Pic/AFP