A few years ago, J. Deepthi fell from the top of a building and yet didn’t feel any pain! Not because of any extraordinary power but because of her intellectual impairment where she cannot express her feelings freely like any other normal girl.
When Deepthi first competed in a State-level athletic meet in Khammam in 2019 despite these challenges, she caught the attention of SAI athletics coach N. Ramesh, who felt that she could be groomed given her ‘rare qualities’.
Not surprisingly, Deepthi’s parents — daily wage labourers in Kalleda (Warangal) — told him that they didn’t have money even to pay the bus fare. So, as with many athletes sponsored by the Gopi-Mytrah Foundation, Ramesh decided to take her under his tutelage and train her at the Gachibowli Stadium and the Gaudium International School here.
