Simran Sharma became the first Indian woman to qualify for the 100-metre track event in the Tokyo Paralympics. Sharma, the youngest of three siblings and hailing from a marginalised family, was a preterm baby born with semi-developed ears, and was kept in an incubator for seven months before she could be brought home. 22 years later, she became the first woman to qualify for this particular track event at the prestigious games.
Sharma credits this win to her husband-cum-coach, Naik Gajendra Singh of the Indian Army, who is said to have sold off plots of land as well sought loans from friends to be able to fund his wife’s training. And according to the reports in the Times of India (TOI), the couple spends close to five hours every day at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (JNS), training for the upcoming event.
During the final trial for the Paralympic Games which was held on June 30 at JNS, Sharma qualified for the event by crossing the finish line in 12 seconds. However, she maintains that her personal best has been 11.87 seconds, and is confident that she will improve before heading to Tokyo.
Sharma, who hails from Delhi and cannot see beyond 10 meters, told TOI, “Never in my dreams had I thought of representing India in the Paralympics. There was a time when people mocked me for my poor vision and called me 'andhi' (blind). My parents were not financially capable of arranging funds for me to undertake athletic training. But my husband has been a great force and I could reach here only because of his support.”