paris
Amit Kumar Saroha may have finished last in the men’s club throw F51 event at the Paralympics, but the success of the younger generation in the form of his disciple Dharambir’s gold and Pranav Surma’s silver medal is like mission accomplished for him.
India’s medal tally at the Paralympics rose to 24 on Wednesday when Dharambir and Pranav finished in the top two but Amit finished last in the same event. Amit, however, is excited that the team will return with a gold medal. “I won’t say it was unfortunate for me,” the 39-year-old said after the competition.
Amit said, “Yes, my competition was not good. I was watching Dharambir, he had fouled the first four throws. I was getting very worried that the competition was getting worse and the same happened with me.”
Amit explains the complexity of the event and says that many factors have to work together to be successful. “Our disability is very severe – our fingers don’t work and we have to glue the club together. But because of the cold, it became so sticky that it was not grippable. The stickiness also tore the skin off my fingers in the process,” he said.
But Amit said he was not disappointed at missing out on a medal in his fourth attempt. “The dream I had has come true. Ever since I started participating in sports, it was my dream to win a medal at the Paralympics and this is my fourth competition – you know I am the most senior athlete in the team – so what if I didn’t win it, my disciple won it,” he said.
When asked if Dharambir’s gold was a gift ahead of Teachers’ Day, Amit said it was more than anything he could have wished for. “We are going back with a gold medal and there can be no bigger guru dakshina than the fact that we were together, we were competing against each other and he won the gold medal,” he said.
Amit said, “Not just the Teachers’ Day gift, he has given me all the gifts (that one can give) today. Not just him, but Pranav (Surma) as well, because when I started club throw in India, nobody knew what it was.”
Amit said that like many other athletes, he was also targeted by critics when he took up club throw as a para athlete after a car accident at the age of 22. It is a condition that partially or completely limits the mobility of the hands and legs due to a spinal cord injury.
Amit said that when he started, no one in the country, including the federation, knew about the sport but now he feels his mission is accomplished. “We swept the medals at the Asian Games, today we have two Paralympic medals – gold and silver – so I feel the hard work I put in has paid off today,” he said.
Amit said, “The next generation has taken over. I have ruled this event like a king for 12 years, I made two Asian records during that time and if my own children (disciples) are breaking them, then nothing can be better than this.”
