Tokyo Paralympics: Nishad Kumar wins silver medal 6 months after battling with Covid

India won its second medal at the Tokyo Paralympics after Nishad Kumar secured silver in the Men's High Jump T47 category. Nishad had initially cleared the mark of 1.89m and 1.94m in his first attempt and took two attempts for the 1.98m mark. He faced a tough fight for the 2.02m attempt against China's Hongjie Chen but won that battle as well which secured a medal.

For the 2.06m mark, Nishad and USA's Dallas Wise took two attempts which led to the athletes being tied for the silver medal. Nishad and Dallas failed to clear the 2.09m mark in their three attempts and both the athletes were awarded the silver medal.

Nishad's achievement is even more significant considering the fact that the athlete had tested positive for Covid around six months ago as he was getting ready to start his preparation for the Tokyo Paralympics. Nishad had arrived at the SAI centre in Bengaluru in February and was undergoing his mandatory seven-day quarantine period. An RT-PCR test was done on the sixth day of the quarantine, as per the guidelines of SAI SOP, where he was tested positive and then shifted to a nearby hospital as a precautionary measure. However, it looks like the virus didn't hamper Nishad's preparation as he was simply magnificent at the Tokyo Paralympics, winning India's 11th medal at the Paralympic Games.

Apart from winning the silver medal, Nishad Kumar also equalled his own Asian Record jump of 2.06m which he had achieved at the 12th Fazza International Championships for World Para Athletics Grand Prix, held in Dubai in 2021.