“I will work harder to change the color of the medal” – Yogesh Kathuniya aims for gold after Paris Paralympics 2024 silver win

India added another medal in the Paris Paralympics 2024 para-athletics events as Yogesh Kathuniya bagged a silver medal in the men’s discus throw F56 event on Monday. The para-athlete from Haryana registered a season’s best throw of 42.22m in the final match at the Stade de France stadium in Paris.

However, Yogesh Kathuniya was not pleased with his silver medal win and vowed to change the color of his medal to gold in his next tournament appearance.

Speaking to the media after his Paris 2024 performance, Kathuniya said (as per PTI):

“Event was okay, I got a silver. I will work harder to change the color of the medal. For some time, I'm winning silver only be it Tokyo [Paralympics]ror today, World Championships or Asian Games..everywhere I'm winning silver. I’m stuck [on silver]. I think I need to work harder. Now I want gold.”

Kathuniya’s silver medal win on Monday was his fourth silver medal since the one he won in the Tokyo Paralympics 2020. He has since won second-place medals at the 2022 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, as well as the 2023 and 2024 World Para Athletics Championships in Paris and Kobe respectively.

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Paris Paralympics 2024 Para-Athletics Men’s Discus Throw F56 Final Full Results

1. Claudiney Batista dos Santos (Brazil): 46.86 PR
2. Yogesh Kathuniya (India): 42.22 SB
3. Konstantinos Tzounis (Greece): 41.32
4. Dusan Laczko (Slovakia): 41.20

• Nebojsa Duric (Serbia): Did Not Start (DNS)

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How was Yogesh Kathuniya’s Paris Paralympics 2024 journey?

Yogesh Kathuniya entered the Paris Paralympics 2024 as one of the prime medal hopefuls for India, having already won a silver medal in the Tokyo 2020 Games.

He started his men’s discus throw final match by throwing his season’s best throw of 42.22m, which placed him behind the eventual gold medal winner Claudiney Batista dos Santos of Brazil.

However, while Batista dos Santos improved upon his initial throw of 44.74m with his next throws, Kathuniya fell shorter and shorter, and further away from the top spot with his next throws.

The Brazilian para-athlete finally secured the gold medal with a Paralympic record throw of 46.86m, while Kathuniya had to settle for silver. Greece’s Konstantinos Tzounis won the bronze medal with a best throw of 41.32m.