File image of Sumit Antil© SAI
All eyes will be on javelin thrower Sumit Antil at the upcoming Paralympics in Paris. The Tokyo 2020 champion will be aiming to defend his title and Antil is taking a lot of inspiration from his able-bodied counterpart Neeraj Chopra, who won silver at the recently-concluded Paris Olympics. In a conversation with SAI Media, Antil, who will be one of the two flag-bearers of the 84-member Indian contingent at the opening ceremony of the Paris Paralympics from August 28 to September 8, said he is drawing inspiration from Chopra's silver-wining effort at the Stade de France in Paris on August 8.
The gold went to Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem, who threw a massive 92.97m, an Olympic record.
"Neeraj bhai's 89.45m throw was a great effort. It was his season's best and it came after he was carrying an injury. That says a lot about the man," Antil said.
The burly javelin thrower from Haryana will be challenging himself at the Paralympics. At Tokyo, Antil broke the world record thrice and his final effort of 68.55 metres won him the gold medal in the F-64 category (athletes with problems in the lower limb(s), or those competing with prosthesis or those affected by leg length difference).
Confident about replicating the Tokyo performance, Antil, who has received a funding of INR 58.97 lakh from the Union sports ministry's Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), said Chopra has shared a simple piece of advice ahead of the Paris Paralympics. "Neeraj bhai says that I should not try anything new and just trust my preparation by staying cool and steady," said Antil.
Despite the confidence, Antil says javelin can cause injuries anytime. Antil said he was carrying a back injury that he expected to heal before the competition at Paris began.
"We are very conscious about injuries this time. It does impact our throws. Right now I have a minor back injury and I don't want that to impact my performance in Paris. Apart from that my preparation has been good and I will try to return with a good result," said Antil.
Sumit Antil, Sonepat's 26-year-old sports hero, lost his left leg in an accident in 2015. However, the support from his family and his resilience helped him overcome the tragedy. Throwing the javelin with a prosthetic left leg, Antil challenges himself every time he has taken part in a global competition.
"I have become a lot more consistent than the time I competed in Tokyo Paralympics. This is because the expectations from everyone has increased multi-fold since my gold in Tokyo. Before that not many people knew about me. I have also become more disciplined than last time and it is reflecting in the way I am performing in recent events."
Antil won back-to-back gold medals at the World Para Athletics Championships in Paris (2023) and Kobe (2024). His quest for breaking records saw him register the biggest throw in F-64 class - 73.29 metre at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games 2023. But his ultimate target is to reach the 80m target.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a press release)