Sanjay Pinto for NDTV

Chennai, Apr 12: Chennai based Rohini Rau is all set to become the first woman sailor to represent India at the Beijing Olympics.

Having recently cleared the selection trials in Mumbai, 20-year-old Rohini Rau is one step closer to becoming the first woman to represent India in next year's Beijing Olympics.

That penultimate step will be at the World Sailing Championship in Portugal in June where Rohini will merely need to figure among the top 19 out of the 54 countries in the Laser Radial category.

"I thought I'd be able to represent India in the Olympics only in 2012. But now I'm all set to do that next year itself in Beijing," said Rohini.

Sailing is an expensive adventure sport. A 'single hander' boat that Rohini uses costs at least Rs 3 lakh and each circuit requires close to Rs 5 lakh. The sad reality however, is that there is no corporate support.

"There are about 14 teams for the Cricket World Cup. But in sailing, there are 74 countries and over a thousand contestants. I hope people wake up to this sport as well," she said.

Come June and Rohini could well make history.