Sheetal Devi (left) and Anand Mahindra.
Credit: PTI Photos
Sheetal Devi must have lost the battle in the individual events at the ongoing Paralympics 2024 in Paris, but the Indian archer won many hearts with her sterling show in the team event in which she clinched a bronze so much that businessman Anand Mahindra kept his one-year-old promise made to the para athlete who competed in the women’s compound open category.
After slipping up in the individual event where she lost out in the round-of-16, Sheetal pairing with Rakesh Kumar bagged the bronze medal with a 156-155 win over Italy's Eleonora Sarti and Matteo Bonacina in mixed team compound archery competition to bring laurels to the country.
And according to a report in News18.com, after seeing Sheetal perform in Paris, Mahindra tweeted a video of the promise he had made a year back and then he spoke about how is going to honour it.
“Extraordinary courage, commitment & a never-give-up spirit are not linked to medals… #SheetalDevi, you are a beacon of inspiration for the country and the entire world. Almost a year ago, as a salute to your indomitable spirit, I requested you to accept any car from our range and we would customise it to enable your navigation. You rightly said you would take up the offer when you turned 18, which you will do next year. I look forward to fulfilling that promise to you… And, of course, no one else could be my #MondayMotivation.”, Mahindra said in a post on X.
The 17-year-old was born with phocomelia, a rare congenital disorder leading to underdeveloped limbs. The condition resulted in her arms not fully forming.
But she overcame the odds to compete in Paralympics and her bronze-medal winning effort capped a new feather in her cap.
In the process, the Kashmir-born Para athlete also became the first Indian woman to win an archery medal at the quadrennial showpiece.
An Arjuna Awardee recipient, Sheetal had won two gold medals and a silver at the 2022 Asian Para Games.
But the bronze at Paris glitters more than gold for Sheetal and Mahindra's car, which would probably be her's once she turns 18 next year and is eligible to drive validly, would just be the icing on the cake.