GSTTA announces Rs.5 lakhs for historic Paralympic medal winner Bhavina Patel
GANDHIDHAM, Sept.10: In a decision that could have a far-reaching impact Gujarat State Table Tennis Association (GSTTA) has decided to reward Bhavina Patel a cash prize of Rs 5 lakhs for her historical Tokyo Paralympic Games silver medal.
In a first for the country, the 34-year-old Ahmedabad-based paddler became the first Indian table tennis player to secure a Paralympic Games medal. In an awe-inspiring performance, Bhavina shocked World no.8 Joyce de Oliveira of Brazil, World no. 9 Megan Shackleton of Great Britain, World no.2 Borislava Peric-Rankovic of Serbia and World no.3 Miao Zhang of China en route to the final where she fell short of a dominating World no. 1 Ying Zhou of China, a two-time former gold medallist at the Games, who was the only player who had managed to beat the Indian at the Games.
“GSTTA is always at the forefront in supporting its athletes. We have always thrived at giving our athletes the best we can, for we understand and respect the fact that it is our athletes who are our ambassadors and our identity.
“We are happy to announce an amount of Rs 5 lakhs to Bhavina Patel for her historic performance at the Paralympic Games. Her performance not only made GSTTA and Gujarat proud but also brought laurels to the country. It is a performance that will be remembered forever,” GSTTA president Mr Vipul Mittra, IAS, said.
“Bhavina is a champion athlete. Playing her first-ever Paralympics, she overcame nerves to conquer the occasion and became the first-ever table tennis player to win a Paralympic medal,” Mr Mittra said while welcoming the champion paddler, who had returned to the city today. “Her performance is the proof of her never-give-up attitude and her resilience will be a subject of discussion for ages to come. It is an awe-inspiring performance which we want to acknowledge with a small token of appreciation,” Mr Mittra said.
Earlier, Gujarat Chief Minister Shri Vijay Rupani had announced a reward of Rs 3 crore while TTFI acknowledged the historic feat with a reward of Rs 31 lakhs. Baroda District Table Tennis Association too chipped in with a reward of Rs 1 lakhs for Bhavina.