It was an Indian one-two in men’s club throw F51 event at the Paris Paralympics as Dharambir and Pranav Soorma won gold and silver respectively.
Dharambir smashed the Asian record with a best throw of 34.92m in his fifth attempt. Soorma then produced a throw of 34.59m in his first attempt but couldn’t better it in later attempts. He thus took silver as Indians locked out the top two in the event. Serbia’s Filip Graovac bagged the bronze with a 34.18m throw in his second attempt.
India has risen to 13th on the Paris Paralympics standings, with these two medals taking the country’s total tally at these Games alone to 24. Dharambir is the fifth Indian to have won gold while Soorma is India’s ninth silver medallist in Paris. Notably, Amit Kumar Saroha, who is a mentor to Dharambir and the 2017 world championship silver medallist, was the third Indian in the fray. He, however, finished last with a best effort of 23.96m.
The F51 event is for athletes whose movements in the trunk, legs and hands have been highly affected. All athletes compete while seated and rely on their shoulders and arm to generate power.
Four fouled attempts and then a record
Dharambir made four foul attempts first up. The 35-year-old, who had won bronze at the world championships this year in Kobe Japan, then managed to break the Asian record and take the top spot in his next throw.
Dharambir was left paralysed from waist down after he misjudged a dive into a canal. It was Saroha who introduced him to para-athletics and within a couple of years of taking it up, Dharambir qualified for the 2016 Rio Paralympics. He finished ninth there and then eighth at the Tokyo Paralympics.
Dharambir had earlier won silver at the Asian Para Games in Hangzhou in early 2022. In recognition of his outstanding performances in national and international competitions, Dharambir was honored with the Bhim Award in 2022, the highest sports honor awarded by the Government of Haryana.
Soorma was 16 when when a cement sheet fell on his head, causing a severe spinal cord injury that left him paralyzed. He spent six months in the hospital, with doctors telling him he would never walk again. He was introduced to para sports by his friends while in hospital.
Pranav excelled academically, scoring 91.2 percent in his 12th board exams and pursuing a postgraduate degree in commerce from the prestigious Delhi School of Economics. He later secured a job as an Assistant Manager at the Bank of Baroda. A former cricketer and roller hockey enthusiast, Pranav rediscovered his love for sports, this time in a wheelchair. His achievements include a silver medal at the 2019 Beijing Grand Prix, a gold medal at the Serbia Open 2023, and both gold and silver medals at the Tunisia Grand Prix 2022. At the Asian Para Games 2023, Pranav set a record with a 30.01m throw in the men’s club throw F51 event, earning a gold medal.