India’s Deepthi Jeevanji reasserted her continental supremacy by snaring a second successive Asian Para Games gold medal in the women’s 400m T20 event after clocking a Games record time of 56.36sec in Nagoya on Tuesday.
The 23-year-old from Telangana, who also holds the Asian record, is a two-time Para World Championships medallist, having won the gold in 2024. She is also a Paralympic bronze winner in the same event.
On Tuesday, Japan’s Niina Kanno (58.92sec) won the silver and her compatriot Akane Kato (1:00.26sec) took bronze.
The T20 classification covers athletes with intellectual impairments. Athletes in this category experience challenges with processing information, concentration, and executing race plans or tactical strategies.
Hailing from a remote village in Telangana’s Warangal, Deepthi’s parents are small farmers, who also worked as labourers in their village. Her talent for running was first discovered by a physical education teacher in her school.
She eventually found support from badminton great Pullela Gopichand at whose suggestion she was tested for intellectual disability in Hyderabad.
After she burst into the limelight with her consistent international performances, Deepthi revealed the tremendous role her parents played in supporting her ambitions despite being taunted for backing her by their fellow villagers.
(PTI)
