Navdeep Clinches Gold; Track And Field Ends With Gold-Bronze Finish (image-twitter/Naveen_Odisha)
India’s remarkable campaign in the track and field event at the Paris Paralympics photo finished with a gold and a bronze at the Stade de France stadium. Grabbing on to the final opportunity to sign off with one final flourish, Navdeep javelin thrower and sprinter Simran Sharma clinched the medals.
India’s Navdeep Singh’s silver medal was upgraded to gold after initial winner Iran’s Sadegh Beit Sayah was disqualified for repeatedly displaying an objectionable flag in the final. The Iranian was disqualified for unsporting and improper conduct.
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Meanwhile, at the same time, reigning world champion Simran won bronze in the women’s 200m T12 final with a personal best time of 24.75 seconds. So far, India’s medal at the Games stands at 29 – seven gold, nine silver, and 13 bronze.
On Saturday, Haryana’s Navdeep Singh became the first athlete to achieve the gold medal in the men’s javelin F41 category.
The 23-year-old who had finished fourth at the Tokyo Games three years ago, produced his personal best effort of 47.32m to claim the top position.
Initially, he ended with a silver medal after he upstaged world record holder Sun Pengxiang of China with a 47.32 throw. However, Iran’s Sadegh bettered Navdeep’s mark and secured the first position with a remarkable throw of 47.64m in his fifth attempt to break the Paralympic record.
Unfortunately, Sadegh got disqualified for violating the rules and missed out on the gold. The F41 category is for athletes who are of short stature.
The Paris Paralympic Committee has not yet revealed the reason for disqualification in detail. It was said that he was disqualified due to a violation of rule 8.1 of the World Para Athletics Rules and Regulations (Code of Conduct and Ethics).
“World Para Athletics (WPA) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, ethics, and conduct in the sport of Para athletics. All participants in the sport, including athletes, coaches, officials, and administrators, have a responsibility to uphold these standards and ensure that the sport is conducted in a fair, honest, and transparent manner,” the 8.1 rule of World Para Athletics Rules and Regulations Code of Conducts stated.
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Navdeep born in Panipat, Haryana, initially faced challenges but he refused his condition define him. His father being a national-level wrestler, Navdeep channeled his passion into athletics, overcoming social expectations and physical limitations.
The victory is a turning point in his life, proving that his determination and grit could overcome any challenges. Despite the setbacks he faced at the Tokyo Paralympics and the Asian Games in 2022, Navdeep rebounded by earning bronze at the World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan, and gold in Paris.
