Our Paralympians Are Proof That India Can Go The Distance - But They Need More Than Just Social Media Mentions
Six days into the 2016 Rio Paralympics and India has already surpassed the number of medals won by the country's athletes at this year's Olympics. This morning Devendra Jhajharia created history by becoming the only Indian to win two gold medals in the Paralympics - he won them both in javelin throw. He lost his arm when he was 8; he was climbing a tree when his hand got caught in raw wiring and had to be amputated.
AFP
Just two days ago, Deepa Malik grew beyond her wheelchair and became a legend for Indian shot put. She's 45 and she just won India a silver in shot put. She's had to undergo 31 surgeries and 183 stitches.
Just two days before Malik's feat, Mariyappan Thangavelu overcame a crushed leg and little training support to win India a high-jump gold. He lost his leg when he was 5, when a bus ran over it. The same day, the same event, Varun Bhati claimed a bronze in high jump.
It's been a huge week for Indian Paralympians. Yet, how much do we know about them besides sharing a FB Post or tweeting pride?
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ALSO READ: Devendra Jhajharia Sets World Record in Javelin Throw, Wins Second Gold For India At Paralympics
How much do you know about India's Paralympic athletes?
The Paralympics have never really been spoken about at the event even though Paralympians have consistently made India shine at the games. But who knows about our athletes and their struggles? How, without much support from the government and the country, they perform magnificently and bring home medals? The Olympics come every four years - we peg all our hopes on Olympian athletes, and more often than not, it finishes leaving us disappointed. However this year, India did create history at the Olympics as well. PV Sindhu became the first Indian woman to win a silver and Sakshi Malik the first Indian female wrestler to win a medal.
But this isn't a comparison between Olympian and Paralympian athletes. Rather, it's about the achievements of India's stellar Paralympic athletes who have been winning us medals silently.
Devendra, the Rajasthan-born athlete, has an amputated left hand and was awarded the Arjuna award in 2004 and the Padma Shri in 2012, becoming the first Paralympian to receive the honour. The 36-year-old, who is currently ranked third in the world, improved his own record by throwing 63.97 metres at the Olympic Stadium. He lost his hand to electrocution when he was eight.
Deepa won a silver medal in the short put F53 event. The 45-year-old is an Arjuna awardee and also an accomplished swimmer, sports junkie and biker.
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ALSO READ: Deepa Malik Just Won A Silver Medal In Shot Put
Other medals for India include a gold won by Mariyappan Thangavelu in the men's high jump T42 event, as well as a bronze in the same event by Varun Singh Bhati. All of these wins are extra special for three different reasons, one of them mentioned above. This is the first time India has won a gold medal in the men's high jump event and it's also the first time ¨C both in Olympics and Paralympics ¨C that two Indians are sharing the stage for two medals.
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What is the Sports Ministry doing?
When PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik brought home a silver and bronze in women's badminton and wrestling respectively, they were showered with money, cars and all things nice. In total, Sindhu received INR 13.61 crores and Sakshi received INR 5.16 crores, including a BMW presented by Sachin Tendulkar.
However, it must be mentioned here that the Sports Ministry announced that they will give cash awards at par with Olympic winners. The discrepancy in awards exists at the state level, who hand out cash and other goodies as they desire.
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The reality for India's Paralympic athletes
Even though India's Paralympic athletes have collectively won more gold medals for the country than the one won by Abhinav Bindra in men's 10m air rifle shooting competition at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, they receive substantially close to no coverage or appreciation. In fact, 2016 is the first year that Paralympic athletes are being recognised for their hard work despite all the odds against them ¨C odds being lack of monetary support from the government, facilities to practice at and also their personal financial background ¨C even though Murlikant Petkar won India's first gold medal for swimming at the event in 1972. And here's a fun fact - the Paralympic Committee of India was only formed in 1984.
This year, the event has received more coverage, perhaps due to increased social media usage, a heightened sense of awareness of the existence of differently-abled people who are often shunned from Indian society and also perhaps because the media has actively pushed for the coverage of these athletes.
The hope now is that the government will wake up to the achievements of Indian athletes at the Paralympics and provide them with funds and facilities to touch higher skies.