"Very touching gesture": Gold medallist Navdeep Singh presents a cap to PM Modi
Sep 12, 2024
New Delhi [India], September 12 : India para-javelin thrower Navdeep Singh presented a cap to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During the interaction, PM Modi also signed his kit on Thursday.
The Indian contingent of the Paris Paralympics met PM Modi at his residence in the national capital on Thursday.
While interacting with PM Modi, Navdeep presented him with a cap. PM Modi sat down as Navdeep gently put the cap on PM Modi's head.
He went on to ask PM Modi to sign the left side of his jacket, which is his throwing arm as well. PM Modi humbly agreed and signed an autograph on his left arm.
"A very touching gesture by my friend and India's pride, Navdeep Singh," PM Modi captioned the video on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C_0VP86SrAp/
During the interaction, PM Modi also asked Navdeep about the video that went viral following his triumph, "Have you seen your video or not. How do you perform with such aggression."
To which, Navdeep replied, "Last time (Tokyo Paralympics), I had finished fourth. Before leaving for Paris, I had promised you, so the promise has been fulfilled."
In the men's javelin F41 event, Navdeep's silver medal was upgraded to gold after the initial winner, Islamic Republic of Iran's Sadegh Beit Sayah, got disqualified from the final.
Navdeep had initially finished second with a season-best throw of 47.32m, while Sadegh, before the disqualification, stood at the top with a Paralympic record of 47.64m.
In the jam-packed Stade de France, it was a redemption arc for Navdeep after he finished fourth in Tokyo.
Navdeep was second in order among the six participants and started his campaign in the final with a foul attempt. He failed to stop the momentum and fell over the line, which resulted in a foul attempt.
In his third attempt, Navdeep dug deep and delivered his season best with a massive 47.32m throw and moved to the top spot.
Overall, it was a historic campaign for India. The Indian contingent concluded its historic Paralympics campaign in Paris with a record haul of 29 medals, including seven golds, nine silvers, and 13 bronzes.
The 29-medal tally is the most by India in the history of the Paralympics. Following the conclusion of the landmark campaign, India surpassed its record medal tally of 19, which was achieved at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. India ended the marquee event in the 18th position.
