Paralympics: A silver worth glittering as gold for Yogesh Kathuniya

Bengaluru, August 30: As the whole nation was rejoicing in para shooter Avani Lekhara'a maiden gold at Paralympics, it was a silver worth its weight in gold for Indian discus thrower Yogesh Kathuniya, who trained for the Paralympic Games without a coach and is quite proud to have finished on the podium without any tangible guidance for over one year now.

The 24-year-old, a B.Com graduate from New Delhi's Kirorimal College, hurled the disc to a best distance of 44.38M in his sixth and last attempt to clinch the silver in te Japanese capital.

"That was amazing. Winning the silver has given me so much more motivation to get the gold medal at Paris 2024," Kathuniya told reporters in the mixed zone.

Kathuniya said preparing for the Games was hard for him as the COVID-19 enforced lockdowns ensured that facilities were closed for a major part of the last two years.

"In the last 18 months the preparations have been very tough. In India there was a six month lockdown so every stadium was closed," he said.

"When I could return to the stadium on a daily basis I had to practice by myself. I couldn't have a coach then and I'm still training without a coach. It was a great moment that I could win the silver medal without a coach," he added.

Son of an Army man, Kathuniya suffered a paralytic attack at the age of eight which left him with co-ordination impairments in his limbs.

Kathuniya said he would work harder to finish on top the next time. "I'm going to work hard. I was just one metre away from the gold medal in Tokyo, but in Paris I will want to break the world record," he said.

"Today wasn't my day as I was fully prepared to break the world record, but that was a barrier I just couldn't break today," he added.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Kathuniya on Twitter.

"Outstanding performance by Yogesh Kathuniya. Delighted that he brings home the Silver medal. His exemplary success will motivate budding athletes. Congrats to him. Wishing him the very best for his future endeavours. #Paralympics,

Brazil's defending champion, reigning world champion and world record holder Claudiney Batista dos Santos won the discus throw gold with a best throw of 45.59M while Leonardo Diaz Aldana (43.36M) of Cuba took the bronze.

In F56 classification, athletes have full arm and trunk muscle power. Pelvic stability is provided by some to full ability to press the knees together.

Khatuniya won a bronze medal in the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai with a best throw of 42.51M which also booked him a Tokyo berth. It was during his time at the KMC that his potential was noticed by several coaches and he soon came under the tutelage of Satyapal Singh at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

A few years later, he came under the guidance of coach Naval Singh. He created a world record in F36 category in his first ever international competition in 2018 at the Para-athletics Grand Prix in Berlin.

(With inputs from PTI)