21-year-old strikes gold at Asia-Pacific Championship, sets sights on Olympics in spite of lack of government support

Nidhi Dev is 21, from the city, and over the moon. She has made the city proud by winning the Asia-Pacific Championship (horse show jumping) eventing gold in Sydney. She was the only participant from India.

Dev, who left for Australia a couple of years ago to pursue higher studies, is now a final-year psychology student at the University of Western Sydney.

There she is being trained by 2000 Olympic gold-medallist Stuart Tinney.

"When I was 11, during the summer vacation I went to the Princess Academy in Palace Grounds with my parents. That was the first time I sat on a horse and I was very excited," Nidhi said over the phone from Australia. "From then my interest in horse-riding developed."

Dev practises three hours every day.

Sitting pretty: Nidhi Dev after she won a gold in Sydney