Shikha Tandon (Born on 12 January 1985) is the ace swimming champion from Bangalore, India. Tandon has won 36 medals in international competitions including five gold medals and 146 national medals. Shikha was the first Indian swimmer to qualify for two events at a single Olympics (in 2004 Athens Olympics), in the 50 m freestyle and 100 m freestyle.
Shikha Tandon was spotted at a state meeting at the age of 12 and selected to compete in two national events, and won a bronze medal. At the age of 13, She went on to compete in the Asian Games. Shikha Participated her first World Championship at the age of 16.
At the 2001 28th junior National aquatic championship Tandon won the 200 m individual medley with a new record. In 2002, Tandon finished 8th in the 100 m freestyle event at the 100m freestyle at the Asian Games in Busan.
In 2003, 57th Senior National Aquatic Championship Shikha broke the Indian women's 50 freestyle record, with a time of 26.61 s. Shikha Tandon won five individual gold medals in the competition, and was declared best swimmer for the third consecutive year (2001, 2002 & 2003).
In 2004 Athens Olympics, Shikha Tandon competed in both the 50 m and the 100 m freestyle, the first Indian swimmer to qualify for two separate events in an Olympic competition. In 2005, Shikha held seven national records and was the first Indian woman to hold so many simultaneously. Shikha Tandon was honoured with an Arjuna Award in the same year 2005.
At the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games, She reached the semi-finals of both 50 m backstroke and 50 m freestyle. In the same year, she became the first female Indian to win an international medal for a short-course event, taking bronze at the indoor Asian age-group swimming Championships in Bangkok. Shikha Tandon had surgery on her shoulder in 2007 and missed many of the season's events.
Shikha Tandon attended Jain College, and then studied biotechnology at Bangalore University. She worked on a lab research project to study genetic deletion polymorphism of certain genes and the resulting effects of it. She also enjoys listening to music and comedy shows. Her role models include Jenny Thompson and Inge de Bruijn.
In 2009, after completing her dual master's degree in Biology and Biotechnology from Case Western Reserve University, she applied at the US Antidoping Agency (USADA) and became the first Indian to be employed at the USADA. she is a member of USADA's science team, who assists in the daily operation, development, and maintenance of the resources, reporting and projects critical to USADA's scientific initiatives.
