Para powerlifter makes a comeback with gold at international event

Jalandhar, June 17

Having had a long gap in game owing to health issues and Covid, Commonweath Para Powerlifting Champion of 2017 Ramandeep Kaur (33) has made a big comeback in the game.

Suffering from polio, she has not just won the Dubai International Powerlifting Championship but has also qualified for the US World Heavyweight Powerlifting Championship this year in the 90 kg-plus category. Besides, she has also won the Strongest Women Trophy at the Dubai event which was held on June 11-12.

Returning to her place yesterday, Ramandeep Kaur shared: “I am super excited after having made a mark yet again. There were over 100 participants from eight countries. The victory has once again filled me with a huge sense of pride and confidence. I am completely charged up once again to perform all the more better in the championships to come.”

Saying that her morale was up again, she recalled that the last few years had been extremely tough for her. “After winning in Commonwealth Games, I kept trying for the job of a coach running around the political leaders but they said that there was no policy for the para players in the game. I applied for all government jobs in sports, disability as well as SC quota but was not considered despite my achievements. It was very demoralising for me and my financial condition had gone for a toss. To add to it, all national and international events remained suspended due to Covid and there was no platform for me to perform anywhere,” she shared.

Ramandeep had also started a small shop at her place where she was selling sweets and biscuits to make an income. Hailing from Ghorewahi village in Bhogpur, she said: “The biggest setback for me was when in April 2020 when I lost my three-month old baby boy due to some disease. It took me months to recover from the shock. A year back, I was blessed with a baby girl. There remained a huge gap in the game which I had to cover before this event. But with God’s grace, I finally managed to grab the coveted gold medal once again”.