India finishes Paralympics with historic tally: Meet the inspiring medallists

From Sheetal Devi, the armless archer, to Sumit Antil, the javelin thrower who had his leg amputated—meet India's Paralympic medal winners, who have conquered their sports against all odds

Sep 09, 2024, 17:26 IST5 min
 <h2><strong>Nithya Sre Sivan - Women"s singles SH6 (Badminton) – Bronze</strong></h2><p><strong></strong>From Hosur in Tamil Nadu, cricket was Nithya Sre Srivan"s favourite sport. However, watching her now-idol Lin Dan play badminton at the Rio Paralympics in 2016 inspired Srivan to start watching the shuttle sport in the lockdown of 2020, she discovered para-badminton and overcame her challenges with her short stature.</p><p>She took home the bronze medal at the women"s singles SH6 event in Paris, which sees standing athletes with vertical challenges compete.</p>
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Nithya Sre Sivan - Women"s singles SH6 (Badminton) – BronzeFrom Hosur in Tamil Nadu, cricket was Nithya Sre Srivan"s favourite sport. However, watching her now-idol Lin Dan play badminton a...
Image by Jennifer Lorenzini / Reuters
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Deepthi Jeevanji - Women"s 400m T20 final – BronzeTrolled and taunted for her appearance while growing up, Deepthi Jeevanji made history as the first intellectually impaired Indian athlete ...
Image by Gonzalo Fuentes / Reuters
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Mariyappan Thangavelu - Men"s high jump T6 final – BronzeAfter taking home the gold medal in Rio 2016 and the silver at Tokyo 2020, a bronze completed Mariyappan Thangavelu"s set at the Par...
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Sharad Kumar - Men"s high jump T6 final – SilverAlso a para high-jumper, Sharad Kumar, suffered paralysis in his left leg at the age of 2 after a forged dose of polio medicine administered ...
Image by Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
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Ajeet Singh Yadav - Men"s javelin throw F46 event – SilverBorn in 1993 in Uttar Pradesh, Ajeet Singh Yadav was involved in a terrible train accident in 2017 and lost his left arm (below the...
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Sundar Singh Gurjar - Men"s javelin throw F46 event – BronzeMuch like Ajeet Singh Yadav, Sundar Singh Gurjar also lost his left hand in an accident. Hailing from Karauli, Rajasthan, he cont...
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7/15
Sachin Sarjerao Khilari - Men"s shot put F46 – SilverBorn to a farmer"s family in Sangli, Maharashtra, Sachin Khilari was left disabled in his left hand after falling from a bicycle during ...
Image by Adam Davy/PA Images via Getty Images
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Harvinder Singh - Men"s Individual Recurve Open (Archery) – GoldWhen he was just one year old, a local doctor administered Harvinder Singh an injection for dengue—however, this left him una...
Image by Steph Chambers/Getty Images
9/15
Dharambir - Men"s Club Throw - F51 (Athletics) – GoldAn accident while diving in the village canal left Dharambir paralysed from the waist down after he crashed into the rocks underneath. H...
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10/15
Pranav Soorma - Men"s Club Throw - F51 (Athletics)- SilverIn 2011, Pranav Soorma suffered a spinal cord injury when a cement sheet fell on him, paralysing him from the waist below. He embra...
Image by Tullio M. Puglia/Getty Images for IPC
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Kapil Parmar - Judo Men"s -60kg J1 – BronzeWhile playing in his village fields as a child, Kapil Parmar accidentally touched a water pump and suffered an electric shock so strong it made hi...
Image by Jennifer Lorenzini / Reuters
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Praveen Kumar - Men"s high jump T64 (Athletics) – GoldPraveen Kumar was born with a short leg, and he tried various sports before first settling on volleyball as a way to build his confiden...
Image by Stephanie Lecocq / Reuters
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Hokato Hotozhe Sema - Men"s shot put F57 (Athletics) – BronzeSema was stationed in Jammu & Kashmir"s Chowkibal as a young soldier in the Indian Army. He dreamed of joining the Special Force...
Image by Paul Miller/Getty Images
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Simran Sharma - Women"s 200m T12 (Athletics) – BronzeSimran Sharma was born prematurely with visual impairment. Even so, her athletics journey began in school, where she quickly excelled an...
Image by Stephanie Lecocq / Reuters
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Navdeep Singh - Men"s javelin throw F41 (Athletics) - GoldAt four feet four inches tall, Navdeep Singh was the subject of taunts in his Haryana village all through his life. He threw himsel...
Image by Umit Bektas / Reuters

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