Indian athletes excelled at the Tokyo Paralympics on Sunday with Nishad Kumar winning the high jump (T47) silver while Vinod Kumar finished third in men's discus (F52) but was made to wait for his bronze confirmation following a protest.
Bhavinaben Patel settled for silver after losing 0-3 to world No. 1 Ying Zhou in the women's singles class 4 TT final. It was a great day for Nishad, 21, son of a marginal farmer, who clinched silver with an Asian record of 2.06m.
Celebration on hold for Vinod after protest
Roderick Townsend of the US clinched the gold, bettering his own world record with a jump of 2.15m. Dalla Wise, who also had a best jump of 2.06m, shared the silver with the Indian with no one getting the bronze. The 41-year-old Vinod Kumar, however, will have to delay his celebration as his medal, according to Indian chef de mission Gursharan Singh, was not confirmed following a protest. "He was in the F52 category. We think someone has lodged a protest. They have not announced his medal yet. His case will be evaluated again and we are expecting an official confirmation by Monday," Gursharan told TOI.
According to the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), classification determines which athletes are eligible to compete in a sport and how the athletes are grouped together for competition. Gursharan, however, expressed confidence that the medals would be awarded to the Indian. "It's just a formality since there's a protest. We don't think there will be a problem as his classification had been okayed earlier." The organisers later said in a communication that the results were under review and "the victory ceremony has been postponed" to Monday.
Nishad, who lost his right hand in a grass-cutter machine accident in his village 14 years back, looked set for a medal as he cleared his jumps quite comfortably. He started at a height of 1.89 before the bar was raised. By the time he crossed 2.06m. only three athletes were left in the fray. He settled for the silver after failing to cross 2.09m. "This medal means a lot to me. To win it on the National Sports Day is very special. I dedicate this medal to my mother, who's a housewife, and my countrymen," Nishad told TOI.
"My father is a small farmer who runs the family with his limited resources. I am also from a place where there's no scope for sports. Considering the situation, I think this silver is a huge achievement," said Nishad, who was picked for high jump in his school because he was tall.
Discus thrower Vinod finished third with an Asian record when he came up with an effort of 19.91m in his fifth attempt. Piotr Kosewicz of Poland took the gold with a throw of 20.02m while Velimir Santor took the silver at 19.98m.
It was a commendable performance by Vinod, who had been in quarantine since he came in contact with a Covid positive person on the flight to Tokyo on August 18. Understandably, Vinod sounded downcast when TOI reached him for comments. "I can only wait. We will till tomorrow," he said.
