Sakina Khatun Fought Polio To Become India's First Female Powerlifter To Qualify For Paralympics
India's Sakina Khatun made the country proud by winning a silver in the Para Powerlifting World Cup in Dubai in the up to 45kg category with a lift of 80kg. Sakina Khatun is the only female para-athlete in Indian history to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games.
It is easy to quote inspirational stuff than to actually do it, but this 32-year-old para-athlete Sakina Khatun is the living example of 'nothing is impossible¡¯. Indian powerlifter Sakina Khatun's physical disability was not strong enough to break her will power. Here's the inspiring journey of Sakina Khatun, who fought Polio to become India's first female powerlifter to qualify for the Tokyo Paralympics.
Indian powerlifter Sakina Khatun | TOI
India's Sakina Khatun made the country proud by winning a silver in the Para Powerlifting World Cup in Dubai in the up to 45kg category with a lift of 80kg. Sakina Khatun is the only female para-athlete in Indian history to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games.
Who is India's powerlifter Sakina Khatun?
Sakina Khatun, an Indian powerlifter was born in Bangalore, Karnataka on June 20, 1989. Sakina Khatun's father worked as a marginal farmer and her family faced many financial problems. Despite all of this, Sakina survived Polio as a child and she had to undergo four surgeries to survive the deadly disease. From a very young age, Khatun was passionate about sports and this passion pushed her to do something extraordinary.
Indian powerlifter Sakina Khatun | indianwomenblog
After the successful surgeries, her medical consultant suggested taking up swimming to strengthen her muscles. That's when Sakina began her journey in sports.
¡°Swimming definitely turned out to be an amazing experience for me. But I could not make it through either competitions or national-level championships. Then, I happened to meet Farman Basha, one of the most renowned powerlifters of India. He put the thought of powerlifting in my head,¡± said Sakina in an interview with YourStory.
Against all odds, lifting ambitions high
Indian powerlifter Sakina Khatun | thehindu
Khatun started her training in powerlifting after completing her class 12th in 2010. Her training sessions would begin in the morning and the evening for two hours.
Sakina Khatun's hard work, persistence, and patience paid off when she was selected for the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Eventually, she won bronze in the 61kg category by lifting a total weight of 88.2kg.
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Wanted something big
Sakina wanted to make it big, and she lifted herself up relentlessly. After winning a medal at the Commonwealth Games. She striving for more and continued her practice and went on to win several laurels. In 2018, Sakina Khatun came second in the Asian Para Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Indian Powerlifter Sakina Khatun with PM Modi | Twitter
She was also awarded (presented by Industrialist T. Anil Jain) among 9 other women achievers at the 2016 BREW awards organised by The Brew Magazine in Chennai, on the occasion of 2016 International Women's Day.
A major hurdle for Sakina Khatun
Despite fighting against all odds, funding has been a major hurdle for Sakina all along. For a long time, she was unable to cater to her nutritional and training needs. After looking at different alternatives, some relief came to the athlete from the Welspun group, one of the leading conglomerates in India that came forward to sponsor her when the going got tough. The Welspun Group company took care of Sakina Khatun's traveling and training expenses in 2018.
Sakina Khatun had to undergo a bitter experience with the Sports Authority of India (SAI) before she got selected for the Paralympics. The pandemic had already inflicted its share of problems, and despite that, she used to practice at the SAI gym until the lockdown was initiated.
?? Destination Tokyo@Tokyo2020 bound Indian Powerlifting squad #Jaideep and #SakinaKhatun depart for Tokyo today from IGI Airport, New Delhi
¡ª SAI Media (@Media_SAI) August 20, 2021
The Contingent is accompanied by Coaches and Support Staff. Let us support them with #Cheer4India#Praise4Para pic.twitter.com/vFLpU39wRG
Sakina Khatun's never-give-up attitude empowers her to taste success and reach great heights and today, she is a source of inspiration for many youngsters across the country, who loos their hopes from few challenges.
Sakina Khatun biggest hope for a medal at Tokyo Paralympics
The Paralympics is going on in Tokyo from August 24 to September 5 and India will start its campaign from August 27 and Sakina Khatun is the biggest hope for a medal at the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics. For sure, the blessings of 1.3 billion people and his hard work is sure to make every Indian proud on a big stage.
Anuj Tiwari writes stories for SEO and is a Youtube wizard. An engineer turned social media champ, he keeps a track of all that goes around the world. His interest areas include historic events, political and social-sciences.
