Gold medallist Bhagat cheques in with generous gesture towards coach, physios
LUCKNOW: Four-time world champion Pramod Bhagat jumped into the arms of coach Gaurav Khanna after winning the final point and also his maiden gold in badminton, defeating Great Britain’s Daniel Bethell on the final day of the Tokyo Paralympics this September.
It’s an unforgettable moment for the coach as well the support staff of the India para-badminton team and the teammates even now. Bhagat’s act simply defined the joy of his success and it surprised everyone.
Bhagat has begun his next journey by playing at the ongoing Uganda International ParaBadminton Championship. But before catching the flight for the qualifying event of the World Para-Badminton Championship early last week, Bhagat surprised coach Khanna and two physios Anurag Dixit and Jai Prakash Mishra.
The ace para-shuttler sent a courier, carrying cheques of Rs 15 lakh for coach Khanna and Rs 2 lakh each for Dixit and Mishra here in Lucknow as a token of appreciation to the people concerned.
“It took me by surprise as Bhagat didn’t even inform me before sending the cheque on his own and was so humble when I called him up to thank him,” physio Dixit said.
“I felt that I had won a gold medal at Tokyo. Bhagat’s gesture was good enough to make me feel that I did something great to him ad at least there is someone to praise my work. I am thankful to him and really excited to have this kind of support from Bhagat,” said Dixit who plans to invest this money in his new physiotherapy centre in the near future.
“It’s a very small gift from my side to you people, who were a great help to me in winning the gold medal. You have been taking care of me for the last many years at the Lucknow centre and I am thankful to all of you,” Bhagat said to Dixit when he called him to say thanks.
Bhagat’s gesture towards his coach and the two physios seems to have inspired the authorities concerned in Uttar Pradesh as chief minister Yogi Adityanath officially announced Rs 10 lakh each for UP coaches and others, who helped the athletes win medals at the Tokyo Paralympics.
“It was a late decision. Otherwise, we could have felicitated the coaches the support staff from Uttar Pradesh at the function for all medal winners at Meerut last week,” said an officer on condition of anonymity.
“We are preparing the final list of eligible coaches and the support staff and soon they would also be getting their dues.”
Yogi Adityanath distributed Rs 32.5 crore to all 17 medallists of the Tokyo Paralympics, including double medallist shooter Avani Lekhara, at a glittering function in Meerut last week, and gave Rs 4 crore each to two UP athletes i.e. Suhas LY (badminton) and Praveen Kumar (high jumper) as per the existing policy in the state. He also awarded Rs 2 crore each to gold medallists, Rs 1.5 crore each to silver medallists and Rs 1 crore each to the bronze medallists.
In fact, the authorities refused cash awards to them as they felt the Games weren’t a team event. But this surprised the para- shuttlers, including all three medallists Pramod Bhagat, Krishna Nagar and Manoj Sarkar who, in a joint letter to both CM and the governor, demanded a cash award for coach Khanna also.
“Out of these 19 medals, Indian para-shuttlers have won four (two gold, one silver and bronze) and out of the seven athletes, participated in Tokyo in para-badminton, six have reached at least the semi-final stage. So, we feel that the man behind our success, Khanna Sir, should be honoured for his work,” the three stated in the joint letter.
Earlier, the UP government had distributed Rs 42 crore to all seven medallists and others from India at the Tokyo Olympics in August at a glittering function in Lucknow.
The government felicitated Tokyo Olympics medallists Neeraj Chopra, Ravi Dahiya, PV Sindhu, Lovlina Borgohain, Bajrang Punia among others. Chopra was given a cash award of Rs 2 crore. Silver medallists Dahiya and Chanu received Rs 1.5 crore each, while bronze medallists Sindhu, Borgohain and Punia received Rs 1 crore each.
The government also felicitated the Indian men and women hockey teams. The bronze-medal winning men’s hockey team got Rs 1 crore for each member, whereas the women team members were given Rs 50 lakh each. CM Yogi also gave the cash award of Rs 50 lakh each to golfer Aditi Ashok and wrestler Punia.
“The support staff and coaches of the Indian men’s hockey team too were showered with cash awards, but nothing for the coaches and the support staff, who also did great and helped athletes win medals at the Tokyo Paralympics,” said a para-shuttler, refusing to be named.
However, he said that even a late decision by the government to give Rs 10 lakh each to the coaches and others from Uttar Pradesh is a welcome gesture.