Para athletes’ stellar show: Lessons to learn
India produced a stellar show in the just-concluded Paris Paralympics, signing off the quadrennial event with their best-ever haul that included seven gold, nine silver and 13 bronze medals. To put that in perspective, the Para athletes' medal count at 29 was five times more than the Olympic athletes who finished with six medals and without a gold. While the unprecedented success somewhat helped mitigate the disappointment of a below-par performance at the Olympics, many raised a question, "Why is that our Para athletes fared better than their Olympic counterparts?” The question is as natural as it is flawed. Though nothing should take away the sheen from Para athletes' stirring show, Olympics and Paralympics are two different ball games, so to speak. If we take the example of men's javelin throw -- in which India won two golds and a silver -- there are sub categories. While two golds came in F64 and F41 categories, the silver came in the F46 section. This segregation based on their disabilities (partially or completely blind, intellectual or limb disabilities) within a single discipline, rather than bundling all specially-abled athletes in one group, increases medal prospects. Credit to India for ensuring better segregation for this edition.
While that was just one aspect behind India's manifold success, the increased government funding, overseas exposure trips, access to better facilities and advanced training methods went a long way in improving their previous best tally of 19 medals at the Tokyo Olympics. Tokyo, in fact, was the defining moment in the country's Paralympic fortunes. The historic show encouraged the Sports Ministry to pump in Rs 74 crore for the Paris edition, compared to the Rs 26 crore it did during the Tokyo edition. The maiden Khelo India Para Games (KIPG) last year in Delhi, where nearly 1,500 Para athletes took part, also helped broad-base the talent and identify potential medal winners and invest in them. The ministry extended the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) for 59 differently-abled athletes, 50 of whom qualified for the Paris meet. That said, differently-abled athletes naturally have a higher desire to excel.
The societal compulsion, wherein a differently-abled person strives hard to feel as normal as an able-bodied person, motivates them to work that much harder. And sports provide them a perfect vehicle in their journey towards the normal world. Of course, this desire is being well-nurtured by a country whose sporting culture is seeing a slow but steady evolution. In a nation, where the society's attitude toward differently-abled persons is either pity or scorn, the Para athletes have shown that with a little bit of encouragement in terms of morale and material, this community could do wonders in their chosen spheres.