Over 115 para-athletes including students from more than 10 special schools and other persons with disabilities, all put up a fantastic show of strength as Goa State Para-Athletics Championship was organised after a long gap of 12 years.
The competitions were held in three age categories: 9-14, 15-19, and above 20; in events namely – 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, Long Jump, Shot Put, Javelin, and Discus throw.
Goa Paralympic Association, in collaboration with the State Commission for Persons with Disabilities, organised the State Para-Athletics Championship 2023-24 at SAG Athletic Stadium, Bambolim.
Secretary for the Office of the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Taha Haaziq, inaugurated the event alongside officials from Goa Paralympic Association and Goa Athletics Association.
State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, Government of Goa – Guruprasad Pawaskar stressed that Para Athletics event should be held regularly.
Among those participating was international para-archer/swimmer Manguesh Kuttikar, who expressed happiness on the occasion as he emphasised that state competition held regularly will enable the para-athletes from the state to become stronger.
Secretary of the Goa Paralympic Association, Sudesh Thakur, thanked Pawaskar for supporting the event.
The championship saw outstanding performances across different categories. In the Intellectual Impaired category, girls aged 9-14, Daphne Fernandes secured gold in the 100 and 200 meters, while Aaeesha Gawde claimed silver in the 100 meters. Moving to the 15-19 age group, Ashwaria Das received gold in the 100 and 200 meters, with Richa Gaude securing silver and Anamika Gaonkar taking bronze in the 100 meters. Aparna Valikar clinched gold in the 400m, while Gaurvi T. Gaude dominated the 800 meters with a gold. Anamika Gaonkar led the shot put event with a gold, followed by Richa Gaude with silver and Radhika Gundagi securing bronze.
For the girls aged 20 and above in the Intellectual Impaired category, Shivani Chari secured gold in the 100 meters, with Roshni Ben earning silver, and Naz A. Nallikun taking bronze. Naz A. Nallikun also clinched gold in long jump, while Shivani Chari won gold in shot put. Arti Satarkar claimed silver, and Deepisha Shelapker secured bronze in the shot put event.
In the boys’ category aged 9-14 for the Intellectual Impaired, Pratik Naik secured gold in the 100 meters, followed by Yograj Aroskar with silver and Suharsh D. Naik with bronze. Suharsh D. Naik clinched gold in the 200 meters, while Mujamil Sayyed took gold in shot put, and Pratik Naik secured silver.
For boys aged 15-19 in the Intellectual Impaired category, Omkar Naik won gold in the 100 meters, Vishal Gosavi secured silver, and Ali Abbas earned bronze. Asheef Malanur claimed gold in both the 200 and 400 meters, while Omkar Bhingi secured gold in shot put, followed by Ibrahim Hurkadli with silver and Geetesh Naik with bronze.
In the 20 plus boys’ category for the Intellectual Impaired, Sanjay Naik secured gold in the 100 meters, followed by Swapnil Naik with silver and Dhiraj Kumar Bind with bronze. Dhiraj Kumar Bind claimed gold in the 200 meters, while Samir Baig won gold in the 400 meters. Sanjay Naik also secured gold in long jump. Swapnil Naik led the shot put with gold, Saish Salkar claimed silver, and Maulali Shaikh secured bronze.
In the Visually Impaired category for girls aged 15-19, Sakshi Kale secured gold in the 100 meters, and Muskan Dodamani claimed silver in discus. Sakshi Kale also won gold in long jump.
For boys aged 9-14 in the Visually Impaired category, Anish Gauda secured gold in the 100 meters, while Yatharth Y. Gaude claimed gold in the 200 meters.
In the 15-19 age group for boys in the Visually Impaired category, Varad Kannur won gold in the 100 meters, followed by Harsh H. Dhargalkar with silver and Ali Abbas with bronze. Varad Kannur also clinched gold in shot put.
In the 20 plus age group for boys in the Visually Impaired category, Purjut Jha secured gold in the 100 meters, Saish Salkar claimed silver, and Tukaram S. Gaonkar secured bronze. Tukaram S. Gaonkar won gold in javelin, while Akshay T. Salelkar secured silver. Purjut Jha also claimed gold in long jump, followed by Deeparaj Deepak Tari with silver. Deeparaj Deepak Tari won gold in shot put.
In the Cerebral Palsy category for boys aged 15-19, Malik Rehan Mulla secured gold in both the 100 and 200 meters. In the 20 plus age group for boys in the Cerebral Palsy category, Jovito Cardozo claimed gold in the 100 meters and Brian Vaz secured silver. Jovito Cardozo also secured gold in shot put.
For the Amputees category, boys aged 9-14 saw Naitik Ramesh Naik claiming gold in the 100 meters and long jump. In the 20 plus age group for boys in the Amputees category, Ritesh Narayan Vaingankar secured gold in the 100 meters. Madan M. Manerkar won gold in the 400 meters, while Gopal P. Naik claimed gold in discus and javelin. Prakash Kundaikar secured gold in shot put.
In the Wheelchair category for boys aged 20 plus, Mahesh Pagadala won gold in discus and shotput. Gauresh Marathe claimed gold in javelin, while Moises Rodrigues secured silver. In the Dwarf category for boys aged 15-19, Ashvek Karbotkar secured gold in both the 100 meters and javelin throw.
