Launch us to more podiums: Mumbai’s differently abled athletes

As India overhauled its Tokyo Paralympics total by nine medals in Paris with 29 medals at the Paris Paralympics compared to 20 in the Japanese capital three years ago the tally is the countryrsquos smiley shiny moment Mumbairsquos differentlyabled athletes some of who have moved into activism advocating for the community say there has to be more support as players are moving through the ranks not just at the topRahul Ramugade captain Mumbai wheelchair cricket team said ldquoIt is extremely difficult to firstly even get access to a ground to play on I was also a paraswimmer earlier and it was equally difficult to find a pool to train in Like many differentlyabled persons I revelled in the pool as the water with its buoyancy makes us feel totally freerdquoleft to right Blind runner Amarjeet Singh Chawla puts his fleetest foot forward and thatrsquos bat for Rahul RamugadeFor Ramugade is certain there are many others with him ldquoThe obstacles begin with the commute to get to training venues Then accessible grounds are sparse to nonexistent There are a few paraathletes who will be doughty enough to keep turning up to practice despite such huge odds Others cannot afford the luxury or undertake such continuous hardship and drop outrdquoInvest bestRamugade explained ldquoMaybe the government should have a timelineoriented scheme wherein the athlete is given support for two to three years once spotted by talent scouts If heshe does not deliver within that time frame post that he can be on his ownrdquo said the cricketer pointing out that ldquoWe have had medals in individual events at the Paralympics not in team sportsrdquoPrakash Nadar played an array of sportsGuides neededAmarjeet Singh Chawla puts his fastest foot forward as a longdistance runner Though the visually impaired runner does not compete at any particular level he said ldquoI know how difficult it is for us Just like students hunt for a writer for their examinations we need an lsquoescortrsquo for our run A guide who can keep pace with the blind runner I have fallen so many times on our roads while training Even the best guide at times cannot warn us about speed breakers or a pothole Visually impaired runners find it difficult to fund themselves on the lower rungs of the sporting ladder how can they fund guides especially for basic travel expenses etc The support should begin before medals are won not just afterrdquo said Chawla who is a Kandivli residentCompete featA familiar sight in his wheelchair especially at Prabhadevi and Worli Prakash Nadar also known as Indias blood man for a record number of blood donations is an activist for the community and has played an array of sports From sea swimming to powerlifting wheelchair tennis and badminton Nadar believes that sport is a great way to live lifeldquoI could go on about the lack of infrastructure and facilities for paraathletes That has been well documented What we need and has not been highlighted adequately is opportunities to compete too When tourneys are held for able athletes we must have a segment where they have a parallel competition or tourney for the differentlyabled too In this way paraathletes will have the same window of opportunities to compete Currently I also witness several Maharashtra paraathletes moving to other states like Haryana which has a more robust sporting system for paraathletesrdquo said the feisty Nadar whose slogan Count my ability not my disability emblazoned on his wheelchair is the philosophy he lives byWheel worriesThere is Geeta Chouhan from Andheri who has a long list of achievements to her name Chouhan is in a wheelchair she was afflicted with polio when she was six She was selected to captain the Indian Womens Wheelchair Basketball team earlier this year has sterling achievements in wheelchair basketball and is a nationallevel athlete in wheelchair racing She has trophies and medals lining her Andheri home what she does not have is a basic a ground to play onldquoWe do not have opportunities to train as a team as currently there are no courts available to usrdquo she said As women paraathletes ldquowe struggle to find grounds with washrooms we can take our wheelchairs into and that has a door we can close behind usrdquo said Chouhan ldquoWe need money and support at this stage which is a springboard for global glory like the Paralympics We are always looking for funding with special topoftheline wheelchairs made for certain sports costing R9 lakh In the end if we want to create an ecosystem for parasport ensuring steady progress we need to start with the paraathletes within the system who are still making their way to the top If you do not have enough water to nurture a sapling then in time it is going to wither awayrdquo she signed off7No of gold medals India won at the Paris Paralympics29Total no of medals India won at the Paris Paralympics