The 17th Paris Paralympic Games will be held from August 28 to September 8. India has sent its largest contingent of 84 players for this, who will participate in 12 events. Along with these players, 95 officials will also be present in Paris. In this way, a total of 179 members are included in the Indian contingent. In the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics, 54 players from India participated in nine events.
Of these 95 officials participating in the Paris Paralympics, 77 are team officials, nine are medical officers (doctors) and nine are other team officials. One reason for having more officials or support staff than players in the team is that many players will be accompanied by their coaches and escorts to take care of their special needs. Javelin thrower Sumit Antil and shooter Avni Lekhara are among the players whose personal coaches will be in Paris. Both of them won gold medals at the Tokyo Paralympics. Sumit and Avni will try to retain their medals.
What did the Sports Ministry say at the time of approval
The Sports Ministry also approved the Paralympic team and said, “Keeping in mind the special needs of some para athletes, personal coaches have also been included in the team. However, the ministry also clarified that the personal coaches being sent to Paris will also help other players if needed as per the instructions of the head of the mission or the chief coach of the team.
117 athletes and 140 support staff went to the main games
In the recently concluded main Paris Olympics 2024, 117 athletes from India participated. These included 70 men and 47 women, who presented their challenge in 16 sports. Along with them, 140 support staff were also allowed to go to Paris. Out of 140, 72 support staff were sent to France at government expense. The Indian team returned from there with a total of five medals including a silver by Neeraj Chopra. In the last few editions, the number of Indian athletes in the Summer Olympics has increased steadily. India’s team of 124 athletes went to Tokyo 2020. Which was India’s largest Olympic contingent till date. India performed its best in the Tokyo Olympics and won seven medals including Neeraj Chopra’s gold.
This time the target is to win 25 medals
Indian Paralympic Committee (PCI) President Devendra Jhajharia is confident that India will surpass the medal tally of the last edition. Devendra Jhajharia himself is a para-athlete. He has won medals in three Paralympics and World Para Athletics. Jhajharia said, “Looking at the preparation and hard work of our athletes in the last three years, I can say with confidence that this time we will win more than 25 medals. The support and motivation provided by the government has inspired para-athletes to work hard.” He said, “Apart from this, government schemes like Khelo India and Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) have been important. Many of our players are preparing under TOPS, which has provided them with the necessary resources and training opportunities.”
There is more hope of medals in athletics
Athletics is the main strength of the team that participated in the Paris Paralympics. Out of the 84 players in the Indian team, 34 are from athletics. This time a good performance is expected in athletics and it is believed that ten medals can be obtained from track and field. Shooting and archery can be the second number to win medals. The performance of India’s badminton players has also been remarkable. India is also expected to get many medals from these games. PCI chief Jhajharia said, “India will be among the top 20 countries in terms of the number of medals. This will be a proud moment for our country. It will be a proof of the hard work and dedication of our athletes and support staff.”
