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Deepa Malik, former president of the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI), has expressed her desire to see India win more medals at the upcoming Paris Paralympics. She expects an improvement in India's medal tally at the Paralympic Games.
Making a bold statement, she has said that she expects 25 to 30 medals from the Indian Paralympic contingent this time around. Deepa Malik was the president of the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) from 2020 until March 2024.
She made a remark on India's performance, which has improved over the years, and also expressed her wish to witness women winning more medals.
“In the 2012 London Paralympics, no woman represented India, and we secured only one medal. In the 2016 Rio Paralympics, 19 athletes represented the country in five-sports disciplines, and we won four medals. In the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, three women won medals, and our 54-member contingent brought home 19 medals,” Malik was quoted as saying by The Bridge.
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Although she is no longer the PCI president, Deepa is still tracking the progress of the Indian para-athletes with utmost interest.
"Until March, I was the PCI president, so I can't shy away from my responsibility. I am tracking the progress of our para athletes and expect 25-30 medals in Paris," she added.
The former PCI president believes that India's graph is going up and this is a good time for the para-athletes.
"With a total of 12 sports and a squad of 80-plus athletes, the graph is going up for India. It is a good time for para athletes," she concluded.
Deepa Malik - The first Indian woman medalist at the Paralympic Games
Deepa Malik has been a versatile athlete herself. Interestingly, she is the only Indian woman to have won medals in three successive Asian Para Games. She achieved the feat in the 2010, 2014, and 2018 editions of the Asian Para Games.
Moreover, she created history when she became the first Indian woman to bag a medal at the Paralympic Games. Deepa clinched a silver in shot put at the 2016 Rio Summer Paralympics.
She also won the gold in the F-53/54 javelin event at the Para Athletic Grand Prix in Dubai in 2018. Further, the Paralympic legend has also won numerous titles at the Asian and World Championships.
Adding to her glorious achievements is the prestigious Padma Shri Award, which she was conferred with in 2017.
