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Ludhiana’s Aishwin Kaur carries Punjab’s Deaflympics hopes
Her medal haul continued last year at the 4th World Deaf Table Tennis Championship in Taiwan, where she won a silver in the team event and two bronze medals in singles and doubles
City’s 19-year-old Aishwin Kaur is the only player from Punjab to feature in the probables list for the 25th Summer Deaflympics, scheduled to take place in Tokyo, Japan, on November 15 and 16. The list was released by the All India Sports Council of the Deaf on Monday after trials were held in Gujarat last month.
Her father, Bikramjit Singh, shared that while the list has been verbally approved by the Sports Authority of India, formal approval will take another two weeks. Following that, the national coaching camp will be held.
Aishwin has an impressive record at the national and international level. She bagged a gold medal at the National Deaf Senior, Junior and Sub-Junior Championships in Ahmedabad earlier this year, beating West Bengal’s Megha 4-2 in a thrilling singles final. In December last year, she brought laurels to Punjab by clinching a silver medal in the team event and a bronze in women’s doubles at the 10th Asia Pacific Deaf Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She was the only player from Punjab to win medals at the event, and her achievements even earned her a meeting with Union sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya in New Delhi.
Her journey, however, has been nothing short of extraordinary. Diagnosed at the age of six with metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD), a rare and incurable genetic disorder that affects the nervous system, doctors had predicted she would not survive long. But Aishwin defied all odds. “They said she wouldn’t live long, but her determination has made her a fighter,” her father recalled with pride.
Her medal haul continued last year at the 4th World Deaf Table Tennis Championship in Taiwan, where she won a silver in the team event and two bronze medals in singles and doubles. She has also proven her mettle in mainstream competitions, winning a silver medal at the Punjab State Ranking Table Tennis Tournament in Amritsar, competing against able-bodied players.
Preparing for the Deaflympics, Aishwin follows a gruelling schedule. “She wakes up at 4.30 am for fitness training, then practises at the academy from 6 to 9.30 am, and again from 3 pm to 9 pm in the evening,” her father said.
With her remarkable grit and talent, Aishwin has become a beacon of inspiration for all young athletes chasing their dreams against all odds.
