India At Paralympics 2024: Inspirational Stories of India’s Paralympians

The Summer Paralympics, now entering its 17th edition, will begin from 28 August to 8 September 2024. Paris, the capital of France, will host this prestigious event. A record 84 athletes from India will compete at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Representing the nation across 12 sports in the French capital, Indian para athletes will aim to surpass the 19 medals won by India at the Tokyo Paralympics three years ago.

Here are some inspirational stories of India’s Paralympians who will complete for India at Paralympics 2024.

Also Read: India at Paralympics 2024: Indian Para Athletes to watch out for

India at Paralympics 2024

1. Soman Rana

Paralympian Soman Rana suffered a mine blast injury and lost his right leg while serving with his unit on December 1, 2006. While most people would consider losing a limb to be the end of their sporting career, Rana, true to the spirit of the Indian Army, overcame his fears and continued his para-athletics training with tenacity. 

Rana, now 41, will complete for the seated shot put in the F-57 category at the Paris Paralympics 2024.

2. Kasthuri Rajamani

At 39, when many athletes reach the twilight of their careers, para powerlifter Kasthuri Rajamani of Tamil Nadu is showing unwavering commitment and resilience, which have enabled her to secure a berth at the Paralympics for the first time. Kasthuri (women’s 67kg) achieved qualification by finishing seventh in the ‘Road to Paris’ rankings.

After the end of the Tbilisi World Cup – the final qualifying competition where Kasthuri failed to register a valid lift – she was placed ninth in the Paris rankings, with only eight athletes making the final cut. Fortunately, she managed to qualify after a few players in her category shifted to other weight categories, helping her jump two spots.

3. Sarita Adhana

Sarita Adhana is an Indian paralympic archer. She qualified for the Summer Paralympics in Paris in the women's Individual compound event of Archery competitions. In 2023, she won a gold and bronze medals at the international championships.

Indian archers won six quota spots for the Paris Paralympics in addition to three new world records in the ranking rounds and medals. Sarita was part of all these records. Sarita not only broke the previous record for the women’s compound solo event with a score of 697, but she also worked alongside Kumar and Sheetal to beat the record for the mixed compound team event and the women’s compound team event.

4. Sharad Kumar

Hailing from Bihar, Para-High Jumper Sharad Kumar contracted polio at the tender age of two at a local eradication drive. While growing up he did not let his disability affect him by focussing on his studies before deciding to take up high jumping.

In 2019, Sharad secured a quota for the Tokyo Paralympics and won a Bronze medal in Tokyo Paralympics Games. Despite carrying an injury as well as dealing with incessant rain during the event, Sharad heroically leapt to a Paralympic bronze medal. He is also an Asian Para Games gold medalist.

Also Read: India At Paralympics 2024: Full fixture, schedule and streaming details

5. Arvind Malik

A discus thrower, Arvind Malik had to switch to shot put when a medical revision found that his physical disability didn’t have a category in the discus throw discipline. After moving to shot put, Malik represented India at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. He finished seventh with a throw of 13.48m. 

Arvind had lost use of his left leg after he was hit on his head by a ball as a child leading to nerve damage. He will complete in F35 category at the Paris Paralympics.

6. Sandeep Chaudhary

Sandeep Chaudhary, the world record holder in men's javelin throw, injured his hip when he was 12. Though the damage wasn't serious, due to lack of medical facilities, he couldn't get immediate treatment which resulted in a permanent damage. Sandeep, the son of an army officer, aspired to join the Indian armed forces like his father but due to the unfortunate incident, he had to give up on his dream.

Ever since he was young, Sandeep tried his hand at multiple sports before deciding to pursue javelin throw as a professional sportsperson. He represented India at the 2018 Asian Para Games, where he won a gold medal and set a new world record of 60.01m. At World Para Athletics' 2021, Chaudhary won with a gold medal with 61.22m. At the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships Chaudhary also won the gold medal with a world record throw of 66.18m.

7. Bhagyashree Madhavrao Jadhav

Hailing from Mahrashtra, Bhagyashree Jadhav has been a consistent performer on the international stage. She won a silver medal in the shot put F34 category at the 2022 Asian Para Games and finished seventh at the Tokyo Paralympics. Jadhav’s journey in sports began in 2017, and she quickly made her mark with medals at various international events, including the Feja World Cup and World Para Athletics Games.

Bhagyashree will be India's flagbearers along with Sumit Antil for the Paris Paralympics 2024, leading the nation’s contingent of 84 athletes.

8. Sakshi Kasana

Sakshi Kasana is one of India's emerging para-athletes in the javelin throw event. Kasana was born with a congenital deformity in her right leg, which affected her growth and mobility. She faced discrimination and bullying from her peers and society. She found solace in sports, especially in athletics. She joined the Sports Authority of India centre in Ghaziabad and trained under coach Amit Kumar. 

Kasana won a bronze medal in the women's javelin throw F64 event at the Asian Para Games 2023. She threw a distance of 24.77m. She also qualified for the Tokyo Paralympics 2020, where she finished ninth. Kasana will compete in F55 category in Paris.

Also Read: India at Paralympics: How many medals has India won so far?

9. Karamjyoti Dalal

Karamjyoti Dalal is one of India's most consistent para-athletes in the discus throw event. Dalal was an able-bodied athlete who represented Haryana at the national level in judo and kabaddi. However, she suffered a spinal injury after falling from a terrace in 2008, which left her with limited mobility in her lower limbs. She went into depression and contemplated suicide. She was encouraged by her family and friends to take up para-athletics as a way of coping with her condition.

The 36-year-old discus thrower from Rohtak bagged a silver medal in the women's discus throw F55/56/57 event at the Asian Para Games 2023. She threw a distance of 19.61m. She also won a bronze medal at the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships in London.