From National Champions and Youth Olympians, Kerala-based athletics club now gives us a Special Olympics medalist
The state of Kerala has a long-standing relationship with the culture of athletics. And a testament to this is the fact that 8 out of India's 19 medals at the Asian Games came from Kerala’s athletes. In that bustling state with the highest literacy rates in the country, there exists a remote village named Kuthanur, Palakkad which has produced an unlikely hero- R Gokul, a 21-year old Special athlete who won two Silver medals at the recently concluded World Games in Abu Dhabi which saw the Indian contingent bag a historic haul of 368 medals. He participated and finished second in the 4x100m Relay event and Long Jump in addition to a fourth-place finish in the 100m sprint event. Youth Olympic athlete Vishnupriya is another product of the Olympic Athletes Club in Palakkad. (Image: TOI) "We use the grounds at the town's Medical College to practice," C Haridas tells The Bridge. "Our club currently has 100 members practising here which include special needs children and deaf and dumb athletes. Gokul won two Silver medals and registered a fourth-place finish. His training over the years has been the same as able-bodied athletes. He never worked less despite being an intellectually-disabled athlete." "If someone asks me to chalk out how much he has improved since he first came here, I would say the number is close to 100%," Haridas continues. "He is quick to learn and work hard- he works harder than most other people to overcome all his other limitations. His brain is active and improving every day." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2f3ZEaCAIU The medalists from Special Olympics are filled with such stories of grit and determination. In addition to beating their social limitations, these athletes have also risen above stigma, intellectual disabilities and a lifetime of having to navigate through the daily routines with more effort than most of us. Gokul's story is just one among them. More people Mr C Haridas and organisations like Tejus Charitable Trust must be given credit as their work proves that the culture of sports knows no physical or economic boundaries. "Sport for all" is a motto they live by.
To say that Gokul comes from a troubled background would be an understatement. His father, Sri. Rajan is physically challenged and earns a measly income as a tailor. His mother Smt. Bhagyawati is a daily wage labourer. For his part, Gokul is the current National champion among special-ability sprinters and his career best is a whopping 11.4 seconds in the 100m discipline.