Of grit and determination: Neither disability, nor deadly disease could keep these athletes away from sports
Paris Paralympic is an inspiration. As they start their campaign today, a look at some of the stories:
1. Manoj Sarkar, who suffers from a lower limb condition due to wrongful medical treatment in childhood, grew up in a family that struggled to make ends meet, making it difficult to support his sports training. His mother worked in a factory, and with the meagre earning, encouraged young Manoj to take up the sport. When it became impossible for her to continue, Manoj stepped up himself and started painting houses. It helped him earn some much-needed money and, with the stroke of the paintbrush being similar to those in badminton, allowed him to polish his skills.
2.Deepthi Jivanji is intellectually impaired and finds it difficult to comprehend things. Her coaches need to explain things to her as if she were still a child. But when she is on the track, she gets it all. Many believe she is a sure gold medal favourite and may even break a record. However, the celebration will be different as she may not fully understand the magnitude of her achievement.
3.Sumit Antil wants to emulate Neeraj Chopra by winning medals at two consecutive Paralympics. Sumit, whose left leg was amputated after a motorcycle accident, aims to hurl his javelin to over 80 meters, break his own world record and defend the gold medal he won in Tokyo. One of the four defending champions from India, Sumit has got a new prosthetic leg and trained abroad (with Chopra also) to hone his skills. If there is one athlete you expect to win gold, it has
