For Delhi’s Yogesh Kathuniya, sport is a way to defy the wheelchair

Yogesh Kathuniya was only eight years old when his life changed completely. He suffered a paralytic attack that left him wheelchair bound for two years and was diagnosed with a neurological syndrome called quadriparesis, which is characterized by severe weakness and loss of function in all four limbs. “Even to stand was a struggle that took two long years,” said Kathuniya, who, even four years back could not have imagined he would be an athlete, let alone win a silver in discus throw (F56, where participants throw from a seated position) at the Tokyo Paralympics.

Kathuniya, a B.Com student in Delhi’s Kirori Mal College, registered a throw of 44.38m in his sixth and final attempt. Brazil’s Claudiney Batista, the defending champion and world champion, took the gold with a paralympic record throw of 45.59m. Leonardo Diaz Aldana of Cuba bagged bronze (43.36m).

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“Only in 2017 when I entered college that a friend introduced me to sport and discus. In school, there were kids who would ridicule me. But I made good friends in college and they motivated me. It gave me a lot of confidence. My parents encouraged me. My mother has been a big support. I am able to come so far because of them,” says 24-year-old Kathuniya.

Kathuniya’s father is a retired armyman and his mother is a homemaker. In college, Kathuniya’s strong built and athletic abilities was noticed by coaches and he eventually ended up training at Delhi’s Jahawarlal Nehru Stadium under coach Naval Singh. “There are no sensations in his lower limbs below his knees and he is able to walk with difficulty,” Singh said. “That he is able to walk at all is because is so strong willed. Even gripping the discus properly was an issue. While sitting and throwing, he cannot use the belt for a long time because it disrupts his blood circulation. So, we would give him a massage and make him do some exercises after every half an hour (of throwing) and then re-start training.”

Kathuniya’s doctors have told him that there is a possibility that he may have to go back on a wheelchair, which is one reason why the Delhi man is so committed to sports. “And there was something natural about his throwing, the jerk is god-gifted, like that of Neeraj Chopra,” said Singh, a Dronacharya award winner who has also trained Sumit Antil, who won a gold medal with a world record in javelin a few hours after Kathuniya’s medal. Before the world championships in 2019, where Kathuniya won a bronze, he would train late into the night.

“Because of the heat in the morning, we were training past midnight and Yogesh never complained. He would only say that I can do anything to win a medal for the country. I was expecting more from him because he has the capability. He was throwing 45.58 in trials,” said Singh.

Kathuniya went into his first big competition, Asian Para Games in 2018 and finished fourth, just a year after picking up a discus. “I never thought I would come into sports. I have difficulties in gripping the discus, making the turn. I have trained very hard to reach here,” Kathuniya said.

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