Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur on Saturday felicitated Paralympics Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Mariyappan Thangavelu and his coach Raja B in New Delhi.
Speaking on the occasion, Thakur said, "Mariyappan has made the country proud with his performance in Rio and now in Tokyo. I congratulate him and take this occasion to congratulate all our para athletes for their fantastic performance."
Speaking to the Sports Minister, Mariyappan said: "I had expected to win a gold for India but due to the weather conditions on the day of the event, I could not fulfill that dream. I am confident that in Paris I will win a gold for the country again."
After winning a silver medal in the men's high jump event at the ongoing Tokyo Paralympics, Mariyappan Thangavelu on Tuesday said he would have cleared the 1.90m mark if conditions were better and it was not raining heavily.
He had missed out on being the flag-bearer at the Opening Ceremony because he was identified as close contact with a COVID-19 infected person.
Mariyappan and Sharad Kumar won silver and bronze respectively in the men's high jump final at the National Stadium in Tokyo on Tuesday. They were both Sport Class T42.
Mariyappan clinched silver after leaping the mark of 1.86m. This was his second medal at the Games, having already won a gold in Rio 2016. Meanwhile, Sharad Kumar grabbed bronze after scaling his season-best mark of 1.83m.
( With inputs from ANI )
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