Yogesh Kathuniya bags silver in men's discus throw F56 event
Discus thrower Yogesh Kathuniya clinched a silver medal in the men's F56 event in the Tokyo Paralympics on Monday as athletics remained India's happy hunting ground at the Games. The 24-year-old, a B.Com graduate from New Delhi's Kirorimal College, sent the disc to the best distance of 44.38m in his sixth and last attempt to clinch the silver.
He lost his arm at the age of eight
Kathuniya suffered a paralytic attack at the age of eight which left him with coordination impairments in his limbs. Notably, in the F56 classification, athletes have full arm and trunk muscle power. Pelvic stability is provided by some to full ability to press knees together.
Brazil's Claudiney Batista dos Santos won gold medal at event
Brazil's defending champion, reigning world champion, and world record holder Claudiney Batista dos Santos won the gold with a best throw of 45.59m while Leonardo Diaz Aldana (43.36m) of Cuba took the bronze. Notably, Kathuniya won a bronze medal in the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai with the best throw of 42.51m which also booked him a Tokyo berth.
He created world record at Para-athletics Grand Prix in 2018
It was during his time at KMC that his potential was noticed by several coaches and he soon came under the tutelage of Satyapal Singh at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. A few years later, he came under the guidance of coach Naval Singh. He created a world record in the F36 category in his first-ever international competition in 2018 at Berlin's Para-athletics Grand Prix.
Here is how Indian para-athletes have performed so far
Meanwhile, Avani Lekhara became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics. She won the R-2 women's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 event. On Sunday, Bhavinaben Patel clinched a silver at the table tennis competition. Notably, on Sunday, India had picked up a silver (high jump) and a bronze (discus throw), which is on hold due to a protest.
