Para Shuttler Dhillon Plans To Train At Prakash Padukone Academy In Pursuit Of 2028 LA Medal

Three-time world champion para-badminton player Tarun Dhillon, who has won almost every accolade in the sport except for a Paralympic medal, now plans to train at the Prakash Padukone Academy in Bengaluru in hopes of securing a podium finish at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

The 30-year-old Dhillon has won men's SL4 singles gold medals in the 2013, 2015 and 2019 World Championships, besides a yellow metal at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta. He also won a gold in men's doubles SL3-SL4 with Kumar Nitesh at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games last year.

SL4 classification is for players with movement affected at a low level on one side of the body, in both legs, or the minor absence of one limb.

"I need to learn some more tricks of the trade and for that I want to train at Prakash Padukone Academy from the upcoming season. I will have to write to the sports ministry for that," Dhillon, who is included in the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), told PTI at the sidelines of an event organised by the Australian High Commission.

"Paris was my second Paralympics and I had gone there with confidence but I failed to reach the semifinals after losing to a French player who eventually won the gold. Had I won that match, you never know I could have won a medal. So, Paralympics medal is the only one missing from my cabinet and I have to win it at 2028 LA." The Australian High Commission here organised a programme ahead of International Day of Persons with Disabilities which falls on Tuesday. Bronze medal winner in the 2018 Asian Para Games in women's shot put, Nidhi Mishra, who is visually impaired, was also present.

Born in Hissar in Haryana, cricket was Dhillon's first choice and he played the game with passion at a young age. He trained at the same academy where current star batter Virat Kohli honed his skills. But an accident when he was nine years old changed his life.

Dhillon badly damaged his right knee during that accident and his condition worsened even after two surgeries. Ultimately, it led to permanent damage.

"After the accident, I knew I would not be able to compete among abled-bodied athletes. But sports was my passion and I would not be able to survive without sports. So, I chose an individual sport (badminton) and I won an international title in my first tournament," Dhillon said.

Talking about his initial passion for cricket, he said, "Cricket was my first love as a child. My dream was to play for India, but fate had other plans for me. It's God's will that I am able to win laurels for the country.

"Kohli also trained at the same academy that I trained as a kid. I have met him and talked to him there, he was in the age group teams. He (Kohli) may or may not be remembering, he was senior to me.

"He was always disciplined and focussed. I admire him a lot. Nobody knew at that time that he would be such a huge name in world cricket." Kohli's childhood academy was the West Delhi Cricket Academy at Paschim Vihar in the national capital.

Dhillon, who now trains in Delhi, said he drew inspiration from top Indian shuttlers like PV Sindhu, HS Prannoy, and Lakshya Sen, as well as international stars like Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei.

The 31-year-old Nidhi, who suffered from retinitis pigmentosa, causing progressive vision loss during her childhood, competes in the F12-13 classification.

She holds a doctorate in history and teaches at a Delhi University college.

"A lot of para sports landscape has changed for the better in the last 10 years when I started playing, no doubt about it, but there is room for further action," she said.

"We need stricter laws, better implementation of the laws, so that women of the country, in general, are safe and secure, and are not harassed. This applies to para sports also. Women pursuing sports need safe space for training as well as for competition." Australian deputy high commissioner Nicholas McCaffrey said that his government has recently decided to have more sporting engagements with India in the coming years, as part of the larger co-operation between the two countries.