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India's Ekta wins a gold and bronze at World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Tunisia

The wheel-chair bound para athlete from Haryana won the yellow metal in the women's club throw F51 event and later added a bronze in the discus throw event.

Ekta Bhyan

Bengaluru, July 13: India's Ekta Bhyan has become the toast of the nation after clinching a gold and bronze at the recent World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Tunisia.

The wheel-chair bound para athlete from Haryana won the yellow metal in the women's club throw F51 event and later added a bronze in the discus throw event.

Her discipline, dedication, determination came to the fore in Tunisia and Twitterati was in awe of her performance.

Ekta's life has all been about courage and conviction. The Hisar girl met with an accident in 2003, injuring her spinal cord which resulted in paralysis of her lower body. She has been ridden to the wheelchair since then.

Once she shifted to the Delhi-based premier health institute Indian Spinal Injury Centre, life changed her all over again for Ekta. With continuous support from her parents, Ekta continued her recovery.

She took up the sport in 2014 and the turning point came when she got to meet Amit Saroha, an Arjuna awardee and a former world No.2 in club throw, who motivated and trained her in club throw and discus throw.

Two operations and several months in rehabilitation made Ekta stronger than before.

She won a gold medal in club throw and a bronze in discus throw at the National Para Athletics Championship in Panchkula, Haryana, in March, 2016, a performance which helped her clinch a berth for the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) sanctioned Para Athletics Grand Prix in Berlin, the same year.

Ekta did not disappoint in the German capital as her grit and determination saw her win a silver medal in Berlin. She also finished fourth in the discus throw event in the same meet.

Later, Ekta represented India at the 2017 IPC Para Athletics World Championships in London. Infact, she was India's sole representative at the London meet.

"I spent 9 months in the hospital. There, I saw how people excelled in their lives even after being on a wheelchair. Life is not in our hands, but living is," Ekta had once commented when asked as to how she coped with the hardships of life.

Well, Ekta is truly living her life and setting an example for others. Her journey has been a true inspiration! Way to go Ekta!

(With IPC inputs)

Story first published: Friday, July 13, 2018, 12:39 [IST]
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