NEW DELHI: Indian athletics saw history being created on Saturday when Tokyo Paralympian high-jumper Praveen Kumar clinched a sensational gold at the 20th National Federation Cup Junior U20 championships in Gujarat’s Nadiad to become the first para-athlete from the country to finish on top of the podium in an able-bodied competition.
Praveen cleared the height of 2.06m in his second attempt to win the gold in a strong field of 16 able-bodied high jumpers. This was the second time Praveen had competed in an able-bodied athletics meet, after his creditable sixth-place finish at the senior national Federation Cup held in Calicut in April.