India's Navdeep Singh's silver medal was upgraded to gold after Iran's Beit Sayah Sadegh was disqualified following a dramatic men's javelin throw F41 final at the Paris Paralympics on Saturday. This was India's first-ever gold medal in the men's javelin F41 category. (Full Coverage|More Sports News)
Starting the competition with a foul, the 23-year-old para-athlete from Haryana, who had finished fourth at the Tokyo Games three years ago, came up with a throw of 46.39 metres in his second attempt, propelling him to the second place. But it was his third throw that electrified the stadium.
With a monstrous throw of 47.32 metres, Navdeep shattered the Paralympic record and surged into lead, only for Sadegh to better the Indian's mark and clinch the gold with a record-breaking effort of 47.64 metres in his fifth attempt.
Who Is Navdeep Singh?
Navdeep hails from Panipat, Haryana. The 23-year-old para athlete, who had to overcome challenges due to his short stature, excelled in the world of sports. Despite the height, Navdeep never lost hope and would go on to pursue his passion for athletics.
Speaking about his educational background, Navdeep has completed his education at Unique Public School and Delhi University, where he studied B.A. Hindi (Hons.).
Taking inspiration from his father, who was a national-level wrestler and a Gram Sachiv, Navdeep was employed as an Inspector in the Income Tax Department in Bengaluru.
Navdeep's career in sports started off in athletics wherein he would purely focus on javelin throw. He received personal coaching in 2017 and made his international debut at the Asian Para Games 2023 wherein he would go on to win gold in javelin throw.
Navdeep has won five gold medals at the national level. In 2021, Navdeep participated in the Fazza International Championship in Dubai and secured the gold medal.
Navdeep's achievements:
Tokyo Paralympics (2020) – 4th position
Asian Para Games (2022) – 4th position
World Para Athletics Championship (2024)– Bronze Medal
U20 World Para Athletics Championship (2019)– Gold Medal
Desert Challenge Cup, USA (2022) – Gold Medal
Marrakech Grand Prix (2022) – Silver Medal
Paris Paralympics (2024) – Gold Medal
Notably, Navdeep Singh got a lot of government interventions and facilities for his practice and preparation for tournaments.
