Pranav Soorma was your regular sports-loving teenager, zipping through roller hockey matches, smashing sixes on the cricket field. That was until life threw him the ultimate curveball at 16. A freak accident-where a cement sheet fell on his head-changed it all, leaving him paralyzed and facing a future in a wheelchair.
Wheelchair? No Problem! Let’s Crush Exams Instead
For most, that would be game over. Not for Pranav Soorma. With a razor-sharp mind and 91.2% in the 12th boards-yes, you read that right-he planned his coup in academics by doing a degree in Economics from the prestigious Delhi School of Economics and landed a plum role as an Assistant Manager at Bank of Baroda. The power move!
Para Sports: Love at Second Sight
And then, the most unlikely comeback happened. Pranav Soorma went back to loving sports this time on wheels. Enter para athletics! It wasn’t long before he crushed the competition: a silver at the 2019 Beijing Grand Prix and gold at the Serbia Open 2023. His ultimate flex? Smashing a throw of 30.01m at the 2023 Asian Para Games with a new record for the men’s club throw F51 event. Boom!
The Real MVPs: Team Soorma, aka His Fam
Here’s the kicker-Pranav Soorma didn’t do it alone. His dad, Sanjeev, quit to become his full-time sports sidekick, while his mom held down the fort as his biggest cheerleader. With their backing, Pranav Soorma’s story isn’t just about medals; it is of grit, family, and turning life’s wildest challenges into pure gold.
The Sportz Planet Desk,
Atharva Shetye
