Paralympics 2024: Kapil Parmar wins India's first-ever medal in para-judo

World No. 1, Kapil Parmar created history by becoming the first Indian to win a medal in para-judo at the Paralympic Games, securing a bronze in the men’s 60kg category at the Paris Paralympics 2024 on Thursday.

The 24-year-old judoka from Sehor, Madhya Pradesh, defeated Brazil's Elielton de Oliveira 10-0 with an impressive Ippon in just 33 seconds.

This victory raised India’s medal tally at the Games to 25, including five gold, nine silver, and eleven bronze medals.

Parmar’s path to the podium included a 10-0 win in the quarterfinals against Venezuela’s Marco Dennis Blanco. He faced a tough 0-10 loss in the semifinals to Iran’s S. Banitaba Khorram Abadi in the J1 class, a category for athletes with no to very low visual acuity.

Competitors in this category wear red circles to indicate their need for guided assistance during matches.

The world’s top-ranked para-judo athlete had previously won silver in the same category at the 2022 Asian Games.

Parmar’s journey has been marked by personal challenges, including surviving a severe electric shock as a child that left him in a coma. He comes from Shivor, a village in Madhya Pradesh, where his father works as a taxi driver, and his sister runs a primary school.