Deepa Malik: India will win at least 15 medals

Deepa Malik

Firsts are no stranger to Deepa Malik. Winning the shot put (F53 category) silver medal at the 2016 Rio Paralympics made her the first Indian woman to achieve the feat.

Now, as Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) president, Malik is waiting to experience history with a rich medal haul from the Tokyo Paralympics, which gets underway on August 24.

India have a staggering 54 athletes in Tokyo, a first in the country's Paralympics history and Malik is expecting at least 15 of them to return with medals. India finished a lowly 41 with two golds, a silver and a bronze during the 2016 Rio Paralympics.

Top-ranked athletes

So, what's behind Malik's high expectations this time? "I don't want to jinx the number of medals, but 15 is a realistic expectation. Most of our athletes are ranked in the Top 8 of their disciplines and 50 per cent of them are in Top 3 positions. In athletics itself, 14 out of 24 participating athletes are in the Top 3 of the world ranking. Our shuttlers and shooters are very strong too.

"The javelin throw story has actually begun with Devendra Jhajharia with his double gold medal feat. We have eight javelin participants this time. Parul Parmar and Pramod Bhagat are World No. 1 shuttlers in their categories," Malik told mid-day on her arrival in Tokyo on Thursday. She will be in quarantine for three days before entering the athletes village.

Malik took charge of PCI last year. "What do I say about the difference I have made? I think it would be best answered by the athletes. I know where the shoe has pinched, so I am trying to remove that.

"Communication with the athletes and the accessibility to reach out to us at any time was very important. I know the needs of the athletes. At no point did we let the athletes feel alienated by the administration. There has been a very direct connect. The best part is that they don't feel any hesitation because they recognise me as one of them. We want an ‘athletes-first' approach and focus on their needs. It should not be left for them to fetch [anything]. We have always tried to ensure that they don't feel ignored. They wanted a similar playing outfit and kit as the able-bodied athletes that participated in the Tokyo Olympics because they wanted the same recall value. I understand that feeling as they want to be accepted with the mainstream athletes.

Passion for para sports

"These are little things, but they go a long way in getting the best out of them. We are passionate about the growth of the para sports," said Malik, who tried to bring in administrative changes that she always felt was lacking when she was competing.

Malik was particularly pleased with para athletes getting the same respect as the able-bodied sportspersons. "A huge thanks to the honorable Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has not made any difference between able and disabled athletes. Both have got similar farewells, got an opportunity to interact with him and got personal wishes as well.

"The way our theme song was unveiled by the honorable Sports Minister Anurag Thakur…it is heartening to see that acceptance already coming into the system. So, everything is at par and there is no difference," Malik signed off.

Also Read: It's the summer of John Cena in WWE