Mariyappan Thangavelu Birthday Special: Lesser-Known Facts About Indian Paralympic Gold Medalist
Born in Periavadagampatti village in Salem district of Tamil Nadu, Mariyappan is one of six children (four brothers and a sister). He was interested in sport from a very young age and he first took part in a competitive event at the age of 14, where he finished second.
Indian Paralympic athlete Mariyappan Thangavelu will celebrate his 25th birthday today (June 28, 2020). Thangavelu represented India at the 2016 Summer Paralympic Games in Rio and won a gold medal in the men’s high jump T-42 category. With this win, he became India first gold medalist at the Paralympic games since 2004. So as Thangavelu turns 25, we take a look at some lesser-known facts about him.
Born in Periavadagampatti village in Salem district of Tamil Nadu, Mariyappan is one of six children (four brothers and a sister). He was interested in sport from a very young age and he first took part in a competitive event at the age of 14, where he finished second. Mariyappan currently trains under Mr.Satyanarayana, who took him under his wings after watching the Tamil-Badu born athlete’s performance at the 2013 Indian national para-athletics championships.
Lesser-Known Facts About Mariyappan Thangavelu
- Mariyappan Thangavelu was born in Periavadagampatti village, Salem district, Tamil Nadu
- As a young kid, Mariyappan enjoyed playing volleyball
- Mariyappan was encouraged to take on High Jumping by his school's physical education teacher
- At 2016 Paralympics in Rio, Mariyappan won a gold medal in men’s high jump T-42 category with a leap of 1.89 m
- At 2019 World Para Athletics Championships, Mariyappan bagged the bronze medal with a jump of 1.80 m
- In 2017, Mariyappan was awarded Padma Shri and Arjuna Award
- A biopic based on Mariyappan’s life is in process and is directed by Aishwaryaa Dhanush
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 28, 2020 08:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).