Bhavina secures India’s first medal
MUMBAI: Late in her teens, Bhavina Patel took a decision: move away from the comfort of her home in her village in Vadnagar, Gujarat, and shift to Ahmedabad. Bound to the wheelchair from the age of one after suffering from polio, Patel wanted to do something in life that broke her out of the endless cycle of sympathy voices around her and make her own path.
She checked into the Blind People’s Association in Ahmedabad, an organisation that provides opportunities ranging from education to employment to sports for people with disabilities. Patel enrolled for a computer course, while also pursuing a B.A through correspondence. Her introduction to table tennis happened by watching her friends play the sport in the association premises. Patel too tried her hand at it and began to enjoy playing the sport in her spare time.
On Friday, Patel confirmed the opening medal for India at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics by entering the semi-finals of the women’s singles Class 4 category. The colour of the medal could yet change if she wins her last-four match on Saturday morning, but a bronze is secured as both losing semi-finalists are guaranteed medals.
After losing her first match in
Tokyo but managing to squeeze past the group stage with a win over world No. 9 Megan Shackleton of Great Britain in a mustwin encounter, the 12th-ranked Indian brought her A game for the knockouts. She first defeated world No. 8 Brazilian Joyce de Oliveira 3-0 (12-10, 13-11, 11-6) in the Round of 16 on Friday morning before coming back to the table hours later to stun world No. 2 and reigning Olympic champion Borislava Peric-rankovic 3-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-7) in the quarter-finals.
Patel will become the second woman from India to win a medal at the Paralympics after Deepa Malik, who won a shot put silver in 2016 Rio.
“She (Patel) has confirmed a slot in the medal position, but we want to see a brighter medal because she deserves better for the hard work and grit that she has shown,” Malik, who is now the president of the Paralympic Committee of India, said. “For a woman, and for a woman with a wheelchair disability to win a medal, it just makes me so elated. I’m proud to see another woman take home a medal from the Paralympics.”
Elsewhere, Tek Chand finished eighth and last in the men’s shot put F55 final with best throw of 9.04m, while powerlifter Sakina Khatun had a fifth-place finish in the women’s 50kg final with a best lift of 93kg in her third attempt.