CHENNAI: The world of sports is unique. The stories it springs up are even more fascinating. Praveen Kumar is no different. He was born with a shorter leg and had battled an inferiority complex because of it as a youngster. Yet, his passion for sport drew him towards volleyball where he needed to jump more and had to rely on one leg (right) to get the lift. He had no idea then that one day he would be competing at the Paralympics and win medals.
Praveen’s life took a providential turn in 2018 when he first visited the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi. He met coach Satyapal Singh and he introduced Praveen to high jump. There were quite a few challenges though. Praveen’s height was not ideal for the high jump.
At 168cm, he was considered short for a sport that thrives on height. Yet, coach Satyapal felt, he would excel in the sport because of his leg strength. “He used to play volleyball and had exceptional leg strength. He used to cycle 12kms daily from his home to school and stadium, which strengthened his legs,” said the coach.
Born to a family from a modest background, in Govindgarh near Greater Noida, Praveen loved sport as it used to be a distraction from his disability. On Friday, after winning gold with an area record jump of 2.08m in the T44 category, he said that credit should go to the coach.
Silver in Tokyo, gold in Paris
In Tokyo, Praveen had won silver to become the youngest Indian Paralympic medallist at the age of 18. The record was later broken by armless archer Sheetal Devi, who won bronze in the mixed team compound open archery a few days ago.