New Delhi: India has a 12-member para-athlete contingent fielded in the upcoming Commonwealth Games. Para Commonwealth Games will be held simultaneously with Commonwealth Games. India is taking part in four para-sports, namely Athletics (Discus Throw and Shot Put), Powerlifting, Swimming and Table Tennis.
In the 2018 Gold Coast games, which were the largest ever para sports event in the history of CWG, India fielded four para-athletes in swimming and table tennis.
Here is the complete list of para-athletes participating in the Birmingham games:
Athletics
Devender Kumar won gold at World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2021 when he threw the discus to a distance of 50.61 m. Experienced shot puters like Poonam Sharma and Sharmila will be eyeing the medal this time.
| Athlete | Event |
| Devender Kumar | Men’s Discus Throw – F42-44/61-64 |
| Devendar Gahlot | Men’s Discus Throw – F42-44/61-64 |
| Poonam Sharma | Women’s Shot Put – F55-57 |
| Sharmila | Women’s Shot Put – F55-57 |
| Santosh | Women’s Shot Put – F55-57 |
Powerlifting
Sakina Khatun participating in powerlifting is the bronze medallist of the 2014 Commonwealth Games. She will look to convert the bronze into gold in Birmingham this time.
| Athlete | Event |
| Sakina Khatun | Women’s Lightweight |
Swimming
In the last games, Vaishnavi Jagtap finished 6th while Kiran Tak finished 7th in the finals. This time Indian para-swimmers have a chance to lay their hands on medals.
| Athlete | Event |
| Ashish Kumar Singh | Backstroke S9 |
| Suyash Narayan Jadhav | Freestyle S7 |
| Niranjan Mukundan | Freestyle S7 |
Table Tennis
In the 2018 games, Para-paddlers Maitreyee Sarkar and Vaishnavi Sutar could not qualify for the finals. The inclusion of paddlers like Bhavina Patel, who won a bronze in Tokyo Paralympics and Sonalben has added to the strength of the Table Tennis contingent.
| Athlete | Event |
| Raj Aravindan Alaga | Singles Class 3-5 |
| Sonalben Patel | Singles Class 3-5 |
| Bhavina Patel | Singles Class 3-5 |
| Baby Sahana Ravi | Singles Class 6-10 |
