Dubai: Proud and honoured at making the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, Indian para-athlete Sandeep Chaudhary has vowed to only get better for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games.
“I am really very happy and honoured to make into the list of Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list. I am not able to believe it that I am the only Indian shortlisted in the Entertainment and Sports category for this year. This is a very proud moment for me and my support staff. I am also proud of myself for my hard work, that I could put my country among the 30 best Asian young sportspersons,” Chaudhary told the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) in an interview.
“As a parathlete, being recognised for my achievements also motivates me to do even better in my next target which has been Tokyo 2020. And even though we will have to wait a little longer now, the focus will still be the same - to win the gold.”
Chaudhary, who won a gold in F44/64 men’s javelin and bettered his own world record at the Dubai 2019 World Para Athletics Championships, is currently preparing for the now-postponed Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games scheduled to be held from August 24 to September 5, 2021. While he is the only Indian to have made it to the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in the Entertainment and Sports category for 2020, some other young Indians including Devika Malik, also an international para-athlete and daughter of Paralympian and Paralympic Committee of India President Deepa Malik, have been named in other categories. Devika, a co-founder of Wheeling Happiness Foundation, has been shortlisted in the Social Entrepreneurs category.
At the 2018 Asian Para Games in Indonesia, Chaudhary won the first gold for his country, also with a world record effort. His disability falls in the F42-44/61-64 category, which relates to limb deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired range of movement. The athletes in this category compete with or without prosthesis. Chaudhary doesn’t use a prosthetic.
