Hyderabad: The Para-Olympic Bronze medal winner from Telangana, Deepthi Jeevanji returned from Paris, and was given a warm welcome by well-wishers and the sporting fraternity at Hyderabad airport on Friday, September 6.
The 2003-born para-athlete is a native of Warangal, Telangana, finished third place in the women’s 400 metres, T20 classification final, at the Stade de France in Paris on September 3, winning India’s second medal in the Paris Para-Olympics.
At the race, the runner came behind only Ukraine’s Yulia Shuliar and Turkiye’s Ayser Onder, by clocking a speed of 55.82 seconds in the 400-metre race.
Deepthi Jeevanji was born with intellectual disability, to daily wage labourer parents Jeevanji Yadhagiri and Jeevanji Dhanalaxmi in Kalleda village, in Warangal district. The athlete had to face multiple hurdles while paving her path to the top.
Deepthi Jeevanji had to face body-shaming and social exclusion from her villagers and some relatives, during her childhood, because of the cognitive disability she was born with. Her ability to run fast was discovered by her physical education teacher at school. She was later supported by Pullela Gopichand in her transformation into an elite-level para-athlete.
Before her Para-Olympic feat, Deepthi had proven herself by winning gold at the World Para Athletic Grand Prix-Morocco in September 2022, 400 metres, T20 classification race, clocking the speed of 57.66 seconds. Later, at the Para Athletic World Championship held in Kobe, Japan on May 20, 2024, she won gold and set an unbeaten world record with a timing of 55.06 seconds.
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