Tokyo Paralympics: Praveen Kumar of India won silver in the men’s high jump T64 event at the Paralympics on Friday, bringing India’s total to 12 medals at the Games.
Praveen Kumar, who was competing in his first Paralympics, set a new Asian record with a 2.07m leap to finish second behind Great Britain’s Jonathan Broom-Edwards, who won gold with a season-best jump of 2.10m.
Praveen Kumar also set a lifetime best and won his first major gold after joining the sport in 2019.
The teenager, who lives in Noida, is the Indian contingent’s youngest medalist.
Maciej Lepiato of Poland, the Rio Games winner, took bronze with a jump of 2.04m.
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Athletes with a leg amputation who compete in a standing posture with prosthesis are classified as T64.
Praveen Kumar competes in T44, which is for athletes with a leg deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power; or impaired passive range of motion in the legs, but he is also qualified to compete in T64.
His congenital disability affects the bones connecting his hip to his left leg.
Praveen Kumar had earned a silver medal at the Junior Para World Championships in his debut year of 2019.
In the T44 division, he is presently ranked third in the world.
After learning about para-sports while competing in the high jump event for able-bodied athletes as a child, he has always trained under national coach Satyapal Singh.
The current Games are shaping up to be India’s finest ever, with the country winning two gold, six silver, and three bronze medals thus far.
