While para-athlete Navdeep Singh etched his name in the annals of Indian sport by clinching a Paris Paralympics gold in the men’s javelin throw F41 event, his reactions during and after the historic performance invited a variety of online comments. (Full Coverage | More Sports News)
A huge chunk of the comments chose to focus on the swear words instinctively uttered by the 23-year-old, as he realised his throw was going to fetch him a medal. Numerous users pointed to his north Indian lineage, ridiculing Navdeep's invective-laden celebration.
However, such comments perhaps overlooked the indescribable rush of emotions that the para-athlete must have felt, as he saw his years of painstaking effort bearing fruits in a split second. Amid intense competition at the world's biggest stage, Navdeep found the throw that made his last three years of training worthwhile.
A 47.32-metre throw initially secured him a silver medal, which was soon upgraded to gold as Iran’s Sadegh Beit Sayah was disqualified by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) over “unsporting or improper conduct.” As seen during the event, Sayah had pulled out a black flag from his bag after the win, which was not his national flag, and hence deemed improper.
In addition to Navdeep's 'Delhi-boy' celebration, his endearing reaction to his coach when being told about his first throw's distance also caught many an eye. A video of Navdeep opening up about his funny conversation with his coach went viral on the Internet.
In the viral clip, Navdeep revealed that he asked his coach to swear on his mother, when the latter said he hit the 46.32m distance in his first attempt. After his delight of having pulled off a solid throw, the 23-year-old went to his coach, who disclosed that the throw indeed measured 46.32 metres.
But Navdeep could not believe his ears, and asked his coach to swear on his mother ('khaao maa kasam'). The coach reassured his ward, who gained a lot more confidence, and the rest is history.
The gold-winning effort was especially sweet for Navdeep, as he had finished fourth at the Tokyo Games three years ago. The Marrakech Grand Prix silver medallist has won five gold at the national level, and gathers inspiration from his father, who was a national-level wrestler and a Gram Sachiv.
