'I Didn't Have that Pressure...': Nitesh Kumar Embraces Pressure-Free Gold Medal at Paralympics 2024

After defeating Daniel Bethell of Great Britain in an exciting men's singles SL3 badminton final on Monday, India's Kumar Nitesh won his first gold medal at the Paralympics. Against Tokyo silver medallist Bethell 21-14 18-21 in an exciting game spanning an hour and 20 minutes, the 29-year-old from Haryana was rock strong in his defence and right on with his shot choices.

Like Nitesh, SL3 class players suffer with more severe lower limb problems and must play on a half-width court. Nitesh lost his left leg in a rail accident in Visakhapatnam in 2009 but recovered from the trauma and discovered his vocation in para badminton when he was fifteen.

Nitesh's triumph on Monday guaranteed that India kept the SL3 gold after Pramod Bhagat won the championship three years ago when para badminton first entered Tokyo. 

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Gold Medallist Nitesh Kumar felt no pressure at the Paris Paralympics 2024

Gold medallist Nitesh Kumar exclusively spoke to The Republic about his thought-provoking experience from the Paralympic 2024 final, looking back on his first competition without feeling pressured. Being the top in the world, he carried expectations and responsibilities and recognised the mental strain of the last versus Daniel Bethell. Notwithstanding earlier disappointments, Nitesh showed incredible coolness, which resulted in an exciting triumph and bestowing his satisfaction in giving a memorable performance on the big stage. Nitesh Kumar said: 

"Yeah, it was a debut Paralympics for me. But, during the whole tournament, I didn't feel like it's my... it's a Paralympics or it's a debut tournament because the moment we started playing it was just like any other tournament when we when we go out there to play every day and just come back and focus on our recovery and everything. But just, yeah, of course, when we used to go back to the Village we used to meet athletes from other sports, other countries and then we used to have good conversation, eat food together and have discussions about how the contingent going to do at the Paralympics. So yeah, of course, it was different but yeah, I didn't have that pressure on me about the debut Paralympics."

At the age of 15, he lost his left leg in a train accident in Visakhapatnam in 2009. However, this devastating event didn't crush his spirit. Facing an opponent who had beaten him nine times in the past, Nitesh, an IIT Mandi graduate, displayed immense mental fortitude as he recorded his first win over Bethell.