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Golden joy for Thangavelu, Bhati claims bronze
NEW DELHI: India’s Mariyappan Thangavelu and Varun Singh Bhati scripted history at the Rio Paralympics on Friday. Thangavelu became only the third Indian to win
NEW DELHI: India’s Mariyappan Thangavelu and Varun Singh Bhati scripted history at the Rio Paralympics on Friday. Thangavelu became only the third Indian to win a Paralympic gold while Bhati secured bronze in the men’s T-42 high jump event.
The 21-year-old cleared 1.89m, edging out US world champion Sam Grewe, who cleared 1.86m. Bhati matched that effort but had to settle for bronze on count-back. It is the first time two Indians have won medals in the same event at the Paralympics. Sharad Kumar, the third Indian in the fray, cleared 1.77m to finish sixth. The T-42 classification is for athletes with lower limb deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired range of movement.
Thangavelu, who hails from Periavadagampatti village, 50km from Salem in Tamil Nadu, was five when an accident left him with a permanent disability. He was going to school when a bus swerved out of control and ran over his right leg, crushing it below the knee. His mother, who sells vegetables to support the family, had to take a loan of `3 lakh for her son’s treatment. The family is still struggling to repay the loan.
At school, Thangavelu just wanted to play volleyball. His school physical education teacher spotted his gift for jump and convinced him to take up high jump. He proved a natural, and in his first school competition at 14, came second competing against able-bodied athletes.
Current coach Satyanarayana spotted him at the 2013 national para-athletics championships. A year later, he convinced him to shift to Bengaluru to train and life changed. Satyanarayana also coached Girisha Nagarajegowda, who won silver in the high jump F-42 event at the London Paralympics.
In his very first year in seniors in 2015, Thangavelu became world No 1. He has joined an elite list of Indian Paralympic champions. Swimmer Murlikant Petkar won India’s first gold medal at Heidelberg in 1972 while javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia won in Athens 2004.
Coming from a humble background, Thangavelu just wants to support his family. “I want to build a good house for my mother, I want her to stay comfortably in life,” he told HT from Rio. His comments in Tamil were translated by Satyanarayana. Tamil Nadu CM, Jayalalithaa, announced Rs 2 crore for Thangavelu. His big challenge initially was to switch from his scissors- jump to the Fosbury flop. “Due to handicap, it took lot of time to make certain changes, but ultimately we succeeded,” he said.
Bhati, hailing from Banjarpur near Greater Noida, is a convert from basketball. “It was a great moment in my life. My personal best was 1.84m, I did better,” he said.
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