Paris Paralympics 2024: From Roller Hockey to Wheelchair Hero: The Unstoppable Pranav Soorma
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
Paris Paralympics 2024: Sharad Kumar, India’s High Flying Hero
India’s high-flying hero, Sharad Kumar, produced a silver medal in the men’s high jump T63 class at the ongoing Paris Paralympics 2024. A Silver so Close At 1.88 meters, Sharad jumped so well that he almost grabbed gold. However the top spot was grabbed by USA’s Ezra Frech, who cleared an incredible 1.94 meters, setting a new Paralympic record in the process. Adding to the glittering collection of Sharad, this silver is in continuation of his bronze at Tokyo 2020. Talk about high stakes! From Polio to Podium: The Sharad Kumar Saga Sharad Kumar’s story reads like a movie script. Having polio at the tender age of two, one would think his chances were pretty slim. But not even close! Instead of staying grounded, Sharad defied expectations and soared high. His high jump dreams took to the air in his school days in Darjeeling, where he was already breaking records-even among able-bodied competitors. His international debut at the 2010 Asian Para Games in Guangzhou marked only the beginning of this high-flying career. Leaps and Bounds of Success The career of Sharad is a plethora of very magnificent moments. He grabbed gold in the 2014 Asian Para Games, breaking a record that had stayed for 12 years and continually bagged silver in the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships. But wait-there’s more! Again, at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta, he leaped a new Games and Continental record by 1.90 meters. With an Arjuna Award presented to him in 2021, Sharad Kumar is not only jumping high but jumping straight into the hearts of fans all over! The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
