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India’s water sports athletes confident of best showing at Paralympics

India’s three-member water sports delegation, comprising two male swimmers and a female canoe sprint athlete, are confident they will be able to deliver their best performances at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. For Suyash Jadhav, it is his 2nd Paralympic Games while Niranjan Mukundan and Prachi Yadav will be making their bow at the biggest […]

India’s three-member water sports delegation, comprising two male swimmers and a female canoe sprint athlete, are confident they will be able to deliver their best performances at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

For Suyash Jadhav, it is his 2nd Paralympic Games while Niranjan Mukundan and Prachi Yadav will be making their bow at the biggest stage for the first time in Tokyo. All three are a part of the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS). Suyash Jadhav’s victory in the Men’s 50m Butterfly S7 (32.71 seconds) in the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta assured him an entry to the Tokyo Paralympics. In fact, even his bronze medal there in the Men’s 200m Individual Medley SM7 (2:51.39) earned him a slot in the event at the Tokyo Paralympics.Now a swim coach in Pune at the Directorate Sports and Youth Affairs, Maharashtra, Suyash has been training at the Balewadi Stadium under the watchful eyes of his coach Tapan Panigrahi.

He has been given assistance from the Government of India in terms of Foreign Exposure, wherein he has participated in more than five International Competitions as well as participation in National Coaching Camps with sports science support along with sports kit. Suyash’s hands had to be amputated after being electrocuted at the age of 11.

Post the 2016 Paralympics, he bagged one gold and two bronze medals at the Asian Para Games in Indonesia in 2018 as well as the Eklavya Award in 2018 and the Arjuna in 2020. While Suyash’s 200m Individual Medley SM7 event is scheduled for August 27, he will be in action again along with Niranjan Mukundan in the Men’s 50m Butterfly S7 events on September 3. For the record, Murlikant Petkar became the first Indian athlete to win a Paralympics medal when he claimed 50m Freestyle gold in Heidelberg, Germany.

Earlier this month, 26-year-old banker Niranjan was allotted a bipartite place in the Games by the International Paralympic Committee. He has over 60 international medals and is the only Para swimmer to cross the 50-medal mark.

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