Vinod Kumar added one more medal in India's tally after the 42-year-old secured a bronze in the Men's Discus Throw F52 finals at the Tokyo Paralympics. Vinod's best attempt was recorded at 19.1m, which also saw him create a new Asian record.
The 42-year-old Vinod, who took up para-athletics in his 30s, cleared 19.91 in the seated/standing discus throw event on his fifth effort. He finished third behind Poland`s gold medallist Piotr Kosewicz (20.02m) and Croatia`s Velimir Sandor (19.98).
Meanwhile, this was India's third medal of the day. Earlier, Indian paddler Bhavina Patel opened the country's account at the Paralympics and secured a silver medal in women's table tennis finals.
Following her, high jumper Nishad Kumar also won a silver in the final event of his respective category. His 2.06m mark also saw him create a new Asian record in men's high jump T45-T47 category.
And in no time another medal from #VinodKumar, today has been special.. he took to sports in late 30s and now at 42yrs creating an Asian Record and winning a @Paralympics medal. True grit and determination. #Bronze @ianuragthakur @narendramodi @Media_SAI #Praise4Para @Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/uWyoPasUef
— Deepa Malik (@DeepaAthlete) August 29, 2021
Rio Paralympics medalist Deepa Malik hailed Vinod's effort and released a short video sharing anecdotes from his journey. "He took to sports in late 30s and now at 42 years creating an Asian Record and winning a Paralympics medal. True grit and determination," she tweeted.
Vinod comes from a family of army men. His father got injured in the 1971 war. Vinod joined BSF but had to leave after suffering an injury in 2002 when he fell off a cliff in Leh leading to severe injuries to his legs. He was bed-ridden for close to 10 years.
Vinod opened a shop near the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Rohtak and got interested in para-athletics watching Rio Paralympic Games coverage on television.
Starting training under local coaches at the stadium near his house, Vinod, who is married and has two daughters aged seven and two, burst onto the scene in the 2018 and 2019 Nationals when he won bronze medals in the F53 discus throw.
He was classified in the F52 category during his first international event at Handisport Open Para Athletics Grand Prix in Paris in 2019. Vinod stood fourth in the World Championships in Dubai which secured him a berth in Tokyo.
- with IANS inputs
