Sundar Singh Gurjar bagged gold in the men’s javelin throw F46 event at the World Para Athletics Championships. His gold-medal winning throw went a distance of 60.36m, comfortably beating the second position throw of Dinesh Priyantha Herath of Sri Lanka. He led from the very first round, never relinquishing his lead throughout the event.
The win is a special moment for Gurjar, who had infamously been denied a chance to compete at the Rio Paralympics after turning up late for his event following a freak incident at the Games. His will to make a triumphant comeback is admirable and he aims to push even harder for the upcoming Asian Games.
The javelin throw event in Rio was eventually won by Devendra Jhajharia, who bagged India the gold medal anyway. Finishing in fourth place at the World Championships was India’s Rinku, who also recorded his best throw of the season, but it was not enough to fetch a medal.
Speaking to the official Paralympic Tournament website, Gurjar said, “The atmosphere was incredible and in this stadium I expect India to win many more medals now. I am happy, of course, although I was not at my best because I have had an injury to my calf. But my best throw was incredible, a personal best”.
“I wasn’t worried about the defending champion (China’s Guo Chunlliang) because I knew all I had to do was my best and not think about the competition. If he had thrown better I would have gone a lot further as well.”
Gurjar’s impressive performance is indeed an inspiration for every one of us. Watch his incredible effort here:
