Preethi Pal, a young athlete from a small farming village in Muzaffarnagar, India, has achieved what was once considered impossible. At 23, she returned from the Paralympic Games in Paris with two bronze medals in the 100-meter and 200-meter races, becoming the first Indian track and field athlete to win two medals at a single Paralympic Games. According to TOI, she was in the T35 category which includes runners with coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis – all impacting movement.
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Born with cerebral palsy, Preethi’s childhood was filled with challenges. Her legs were crooked, and she could barely walk, let alone run. She underwent numerous treatments, including painful massages, injections, and wearing callipers (leg braces) to help straighten her feet and support her movement.
Growing up, people in her village doubted her future. They told her parents that she wouldn’t be able to marry or live a normal life because of her disability. However, Preethi never let these comments define her. Instead, she found strength in her condition and decided to rewrite her story.
At 18, she came across a video of para-athletes competing and was instantly inspired. She thought, “If they’re running, so can I.” Her journey into sports began then, and she soon met a para-athlete, Fatima Khatoon, who introduced her to the world of para-athletics and guided her step-by-step. She also met her coach, Gajender Singh, who played a crucial role in her transformation from a struggling runner to a Paralympic medalist. His wife, Simran Sharma, a para-athlete herself, became Preeti’s idol. Together, they pushed her to achieve what no one thought she could.
Preethi’s path to success was not easy. Coming from a rural area, she faced difficulties with training and funding. She would wake up at 5 AM, prepare food for her family, and cycle 5 kilometres to train, often tiring herself out before the practice even began. Despite this, she never gave up. After a disappointing performance at the 2022 Asian Games, she realized she needed to work even harder. Moving to Delhi, she trained relentlessly under her new coach’s guidance, determined to prove herself on the global stage.
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And prove herself she did. Preethi’s victory in the Paralympics has brought immense pride not only to her family but also to her entire community. The same villagers who once doubted her now celebrate her success. Her father, who once questioned her dreams of pursuing sports over academics, now proudly receives congratulations from everyone. People are finally recognizing that this girl, whom they once thought had no future, has become a national hero.
“People used to say, ‘How will this girl get married, how will she even take care of herself, she has no future.’ I used to feel bad and think why are people looking at me like this, why are they saying these things? Those people who used say those things are now coming to give my family congratulations. My dad is probably thinking ‘my daughter shut their mouths’,” she said in an interview with NPR.