India’s first gold medallist in Paralympic Games, Murlikant Rajaram Petkar was on Thursday elated by the news that the Sports Ministry has recommended him for the Arjuna Award in the Lifetime category and said his lone remaining wish has been fulfilled. Petkar won a gold medal in men’s 50m freestyle swimming in the 1972 Paralympic Games in Heidelberg, Germany, becoming the first Indian to bag an individual gold medal in the Olympics or Paralympic Games. However, his achievement went unnoticed and unrewarded for decades as para-sports did not get much recognition in those times and were not considered for the Arjuna Award, the top sports award before the Khel Ratna was introduced in 1991-92.

On Thursday, Petkar was nominated for the Arjuna Award in the Lifetime category by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sport, 52 years after he should have received it following his brilliant triumph in the Paralympic Games, which came with a couple of world records.

The 80-year-old Petkar decided not to dwell on the delay in getting the award but instead expressed his delight at the government finally recognising his achievements. The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi conferred the Padma Shri award on Petkar in 2018 and the Arjuna Award in the lifetime category is the second recognition from the present government.

“This was my only wish left (to be fulfilled). Before today, this was the only regret, this one was left and now I got this fulfilled too and I am very happy about that. I did not get it earlier, that is right but now I am happy to get it. It always feels good to be recognised. Whatever happens is for the good, it is God’s wish,” Murlikant Petkar told IANS over the phone from Pune where he spends his retired life with his son, Arjun.

“We thank the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Indian Army, Sports Authority of India, the Maharashtra government, and all those who supported us over the years,” said both Murlikant Petkar and his son Arjun.

Arjun also thanked filmmaker Kabir Khan for making a biopic on Murlikant Petkar, Chandu Champion, which highlighted his life story and made it part of popular culture.

Petkar was also happy that para-sportspersons nowadays get their due following their success in the Paralympic Games unlike when he participated. This year, the government awarded Khel Ratna to para-athlete Praveen Kumar, who won the gold medal in the high jump in the 2024 Paralympic Games, along with World Chess Champion D. Gukesh, Paris Olympic Games double bronze medallist shooter Manu Bhaker and two-time Olympic bronze medallist hockey star Harmanpreet Singh.

In the list of 32 shortlisted for the Arjuna Award, there are 17 para-sportspersons including javelin thrower Navdeep, Sachin Khilari, Dharambir, archer Rakesh, para-shuttlers Nitish Kumar, Thulasimathi Murugesan, Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivanand Manisha Ramadass.

Asked about his dream for para-sportspersons in the country, Murlikant Petkar said he would like to see India win 50 medals in the Paralympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.

“The PCI (Paralympic Committee of India) had set a target of 25 medals for Paris and we won 29 medals. Now I have given a target of 50 medals. I will be even happier if that happens,” said Petkar.

The Sports Ministry made some more course corrections and awarded the Arjuna Award (Lifetime) to para-swimmer Murlikant Rajaram Petkar, India’s first gold medallist in the Paralympic Games, conferring on him the prestigious award 52 years after he made history for the country in Heidelberg, Germany. A soldier with the Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME) of the Indian Army, when he suffered a debilitating injury that rendered him paraplegic, Petkar won the gold medal in the men’s 50m freestyle swimming in the 1972 Paralympic Games at Heidelberg, Germany, becoming the first Indian to bag an individual gold medal in the Olympics or Paralympic Games.

Petkar, who suffered severe injuries when an army camp in Srinagar came under attack during the 1965 war with Pakistan, set three world records in the course of winning the gold medal but failed to get recognised with the Arjuna Award for excellence in sports for nearly half-a-century as para-sports did not get much recognition in those times.

Now, the 80-year-old Petkar will receive his award from the President of India Droupadi Murmu at a specially organised function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 17, 2025.

Petkar was awarded the Padma Shri in 2018.

The legendary para-swimmer’s achievements had gone under the radar for decades as para-sports failed to get much recognition from the public and government in those days, and facilities and support were minimal. Despite those hurdles, Petkar went on to win a gold medal.

An all-rounder in sports, having dabbled in multiple events and disciplines before achieving glory in para-swimming, Petkar was aspiring to become the country’s top boxer before he got disabled. He had won a gold medal in boxing at the Military Games in Japan a few months before he got injured and rendered disabled.

Petkar represented India in the Paralympic Games of 1968 and 1972. In the 1968 Paralympic Games in Mexico, he took part in para-table tennis and reached the second round. In 1972, besides swimming, Petkar also participated in javelin throw, precision javelin throw, and slalom and was a finalist in all three events too.

After retiring from TELCO, he is living a retired life in Pune where his son Arjun Murlikant Petkar is employed with the Army.

File image of Pratyasa Ray© X (Twitter)

Leon Marchand said he often needs to don a disguise to evade attention.© AFP

A British Indian schoolgirl who recently turned 16 has made history as one of the youngest to cross the notoriously choppy English Channel to raise funds for a charity fighting against childhood hunger across India and the UK. Prisha Tapre, a pupil at Bushey Meads School in north London, was motivated by a family discussion about the English Channel to take on the challenge when she was just 12. After four years of training, she went on to complete the 34-kilometre swim from the coast of Dover in England to Cap Gris Nez in France last week in 11 hours and 48 minutes. “It was quite choppy at the start, but when the sun started to rise, I knew that the worst bit was done with,” said Tapre, reliving her mission in an interview from her home at Watford in Hertfordshire.

“It’s always the first two hours that are the hardest part of the swim because it’s about getting your mind around the fact that this is where you’re going to be for the next few hours. I was actually beginning to get quite sleepy and my eyes were about to shut, but then the sun started to come up and the sleep went away. The weather conditions were amazing, really still; the best I could have asked for,” she said.

The swimming enthusiast, who describes the lake near her home as her “calm place”, used lots of meditative techniques and even felt a strange bond with the jellyfish that stung her along the way.

“The jellyfish stings were probably my favourite bit because it’s just an extra feeling. After swimming for like nine hours, you’re in a sort of trance. But then the jellyfish stings kind of reminded me that I’m actually alive. I know it sounds odd, but it was something to tick off my bucket list,” she shared.

As for thoughts of giving up during the course of such a gruelling solo swim or any “rough patches”, she overcame them with a single-minded focus on her goal as she did not want to let down her family, her support crew and herself.

“I just kept thinking, four years you’ve dedicated to this one day of your life. It can’t be that bad. And, for those four years, my coach has been saying that swimming is 60 per cent mental and 40 per cent physical. So, I kept reminding myself that this is where I am meant to be; giving up would be selfish,” she said.

The UK-born teenager, whose parents hail from Maharashtra, raised GBP 3,700 for her chosen charity – Akshaya Patra UK, the British chapter of the India-headquartered non-profit organisation with a mission to provide hot meals to children in need.

“Part of the reason I chose my charity Akshaya Patra is because I wanted a charity that I could relate to. When I found out Akshaya Patra helps kids both in England and India, it really connected with me. I wanted a charity that has both sides of me. My heart goes out to all those kids who live in poverty, both in England and India, where there’s no promise of a meal at the end of the day,” said the young fundraiser.

Now, having completed such a tough mission with the support of the Watford Swimming Club, Tapre is keen to focus on her new school term which began this month.

However, she remains determined to take on even bigger challenges even as she works towards a career in medicine, perhaps related to the field of sports.

“I do need a lot more time to focus on my studies, but that will not stop me from continuing swimming because to me it is like free time. I would rather come home from school and instead of going on my phone, go down to my lake. In terms of what I want to swim next, there’s just a lot of options; I definitely want to complete a 24-hour swim, though not sure when. What I do know is that after the Channel, the swims are only going to keep getting bigger,” she added.

File image.© X (Twitter)

File photos of Taapsee Pannu (left) and Imane Khelif.© Instagram – @Taapsee and @jeuxolympiques

Commentator Bob Ballard has been removed from the commentary panel by broadcasters after the veteran made a sexist remark on air during a swimming event. The Australia women’s 4x100m freestyle swimming relay team were on the way off the pool deck after winning the gold medal at their event, when Ballard, while commentating on Eurosport, said, “you know what women are like… hanging around, doing their make up.”

Ballard has been a commentator for almost 40 years and has commented on many Olympic panels in sports like water polo, ice hockey, diving and swimming.

Co-commentator and British swimming champion Lizzie Simmonds labeled the comments as ‘outrageous’ which was laughed off by Bob.

Most of our Olympic posts will be positive, as they should be. But we must call out the bad, too. Things like this remark about Australia’s relay team who had JUST WON GOLD. It rightfully led to this commentator, Bob Ballard, being sacked.

Credit @thelifeoflyds pic.twitter.com/gmC8UJp9tt

— FW (Future Women) (@FutureWomen) July 29, 2024

When will these people ever learn? Why aren’t they being given some training? @eurosport commentator Bob Ballard thought this was the best time to be sexist: ‘’You know what women are like… hanging around, doing their make-up,” he said. Shameful. pic.twitter.com/6PQOZHQJvD

— Prof. Pragya Agarwal (@DrPragyaAgarwal) July 28, 2024

Following the incident, Eurosport issued a statement confirming Ballard was axed from the commentary panel.

“During a segment of Eurosport’s coverage last night, commentator Bob Ballard made an inappropriate comment. To that end, he has been removed from our commentary roster with immediate effect,” read the statement.

Mollie O’Callaghan, Emma McKeon, Meg Harris and Shayna Jack were part of the four member team that secured Australia’s fourth straight gold medal in the event at the Olympics.

Swimming events are being at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Aquatic Sports Arena.© AFP