The Indian government on Monday named six sportspersons and retired coach O.M. Nambiar for the prestigious Padma Shri award for 2021. The elite accolade does not only acknowledge the achievements in multiple fields but also highlights the spirit of the awardee. Among the nominations of this year, are two differently-abled athletes—K.Y. Venkatesh and Virender Singh.
Venkatesh was the first and only great athlete to represent India at the 4th edition of the World Dwarf Games in Rombuillet, France in 2005. Venkatesh won six medals two gold, one silver, and three bronze at the Games.
Venkatesh was born with Achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism in which the trunk is of normal size, but the limbs are too short. For almost two decades he represented the state and country at many national and global meets in athletics and badminton. After retiring as an athlete, Venkatesh decided to contribute to para-sports as an administrator.
Another awardee, Virender Singh has won three gold medals and a bronze in Deaflympics. He has won three gold medals, and a bronze at the Deaflympics, an International Olympic Committee sanctioned event for deaf athletes. He won his first gold in the 84kg division at the 2005 Melbourne Deaflympics and then bronze at the 2009 Taiwan Games. He then shifted to 74kg and won gold at the 2013 and 2017 Deaflympics. He also won gold, silver, and bronze at three World Deaf Wrestling Championships. He won the Arjuna Award in 2015.
Star wrestler Virender Singh’s struggle is well documented in a 2013 documentary film Goonga Pehelwan which is based on his life span and struggles.
He is currently employed as a junior coach with the Sports Authority of India. Nowadays, he is doing intensive training for the forthcoming Deaf World Wrestling Championship and Deaflympics 2021. Besides winning the Arjuna award in 2016, Virender Singh is the recipient of the Delhi Rajiv Gandhi Award (2008) and the National Disability Award in 2018.
Besides Virender Singh, Mouma Das (Table Tennis), P. Anita (Basketball), Sudha Singh (athletics), M. Nambiar (Atheltic coach), and K.Y. Venkatesh (para-sports) have also been nominated for the Padma Shri award for 2021 in the field of sports.
The writer is a former Associate Professor, Delhi University.