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Deepa Malik eyes golden jubilee with a difference in 2020 Paralympic Games
Deepa Malik wants to ring in her 50th birthday with a gold medal at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo.
The journey to an Olympic medal took Deepa Malik 10 years. Now, India’s first Paralympic medallist is eyeing a ‘golden jubilee’ in the 2020 Games.
Deepa turns 50 when the Olympics next come and having won silver in the F53 shotput in Rio last year, she has set the bar higher. “I am not going to give up so easily,” she said, at the launch of ‘A History of India Sport Through 100 Artefacts’ by Boria Majumdar here on Tuesday.
“I was 36 when my journey started as an international sportperson and that was in Kuala Lumpur as a swimmer. I won silver (in the S-5 backstroke category). It took me a long time before I could get to the Olympic podium and now I want gold. It will be a golden jubilee with a difference,” said Deepa, 46.
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She said her feat in Rio has helped generate a lot of awareness about Paralympic sport. “There were some 200 physically challenged people at a trial on Monday as spectators. Every week, I get 10-20 queries asking how to begin a career in Paralympics.
“Moreover, I get told about stories of women who may have been good singers or bakers or cooks but who had put their desires on hold for different reasons. Now, they say they are starting to do things they like. So, in a way, my medal is actually a lot more than a medal. ”
