Special athletes from city shine at World Winter Special Olympics

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 24

For the three truly special sports stars from Pingalwara’s humble abode, Poonam, Sooraj and Rajinder Raju, it was homecoming worth celebrating. The trio was part of the Indian Special Olympics contingent from Punjab and returned victorious with two golds and a bronze medal.

Arriving at the MANAWALA complex of their home, the three special sportspersons were greeted with applause, dhol beats and heaps of garlands. A wave of fans and admirers, staff and inmates of Pingalwara embraced the them with pride and joy. The mammoth reception wasn’t enough; the three players shared their happiness over the success achieved. “It is only the hard work of our mentors and coaches and our teachers that we could get the confidence to represent our country at international level,” said Raju.

Poonam won bronze in floor hockey team while Suraj and Raju won golds in football and floor hockey respectively. Out of the eight special athletes from Punjab, a total of five golds, one silver and two bronze medals were won.

Dr Inderjit Kaur, President of the All-India Pingalwara Charitable Society, and other members congratulated the players and praised the efforts of the Pingalwara trainers in coaching their talent. She even praised all the special athletes, who participated and won gold for their country in floor hockey tournament.

Pingalwara has earmarked a special budget to hone the skills of their special athletes and recruit trainers and coaches from sports academies for their training. In the past too, special athletes from Pingalwara have won medals at world games and national sports tournaments.