The 24-year-old Nishad Kumar clinched the silver medal in the men’s high jump T47 event at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. It was his second Paralympic medal.
In the men’s high jump T47 event at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, the world record and Paralympic record holder Roderick Townsend of the USA won the gold medal after managing his season-best record of 2.12m in one attempt. Although Townsend also set the 2.17m mark to thrash his world record (2.16m) as well as his Paralympic record (2.15m), he couldn’t achieve success in three attempts.
Nishad Kumar secured the silver medal with his best jump of 2.04m, which was also his season-best record. He also attempted 2.08m, but he couldn’t achieve it in three attempts.
Meanwhile, Neutral para athlete Georgii Margiev claimed the bronze medal with his 2.00m jump. He tried on 2.02m, but he was unsuccessful in three attempts.
Nishad Kumar also won silver medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics
It was the second time Nishad Kumar won a medal in the Paralympics. During the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, Nishad clinched the silver medal in the men’s high jump T47 event after achieving 2.06m.
Olympics says, “The T47 class is meant for athletes with a unilateral upper limb impairment resulting in some loss of function at the shoulder, elbow, and wrist.”
Nishad was desperate to win gold at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games by beating the star USA para-athlete Roderick Townsend.
After securing the silver medal, Nishad said, according to Olympics.com, "Last Tuesday, I cleared 2.10m in practice, and today I stopped at 2.04. So I am disappointed. I have been losing to (Townsend) in Tokyo (2020 Paralympics), in World Championships, and here at another Olympics, so the silver is not giving me so much joy but pinching at me.
"I was so confident, because in training I was consistently doing 2.07, 2.08... Of course I'm disappointed, but God knows why this couldn't happen today."
Who is Nishad Kumar?
Nishad Kumar is from Baduan village of Amb sub-division in Una District, Himachal Pradesh. When he was six years old, Nishad’s right hand was accidentally damaged by a grass-cutting machine.
Apart from two Paralympic medals, Nishad won a gold medal at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Para Games and three medals (two silver medals and one bronze medal) in the World Para Athletics Championships.
Nishad was honoured with the Arjuna Award in 2021.
