Star
Badminton player, Palak Kohli, has once again made the country proud by winning
three medals in Dubai Para-badminton international championship held recently.
Palak, who has a deformed left arm since birth, won a silver medal in singles,
bronze in doubles, and again bronze in mixed doubles. Not just this, last year
she qualified for Tokyo Olympics and the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).
Palak's family expressed their happiness and said that they never thought she
would ever achieve such a great position, however she never gave up and
achieved all this on her own.
They said she has sacrificed a lot to achieve this aim. They informed that she
missed her Class XII CBSE examination in 2019 as the dates clashed with a
qualifying tournament that was then being held in Peru.
Meanwhile, Palak said that her goal is to win the gold medal in Para Olympics,
representing India.
Talking about her journey she said she started the game in 2017, and quickly
managed success. In 2019 National Para Badminton Championship, she won three
gold medals in Women Singles, Women Doubles, and under-19 Single Girls.
Internationally, she has won gold in Women Doubles in Uganda Para Badminton
International-2019.
She also got silver in Women Doubles in Peru Para Badminton International-2020,
besides a bronze in Japan Para Badminton International-2019. Besides, she holds
the fifth rank in the world in para-badminton.
Last year, in 2020 Palak Kohli practiced on the temporary court in her
residential society, amid the Corona virus pandemic. Palak was being trained
under Dhronacharya award-winning coach Gaurav Khanna in his academy.
In March 2020 when the pandemic struck, players had to leave the academy before
national lockdown. Palak bought an apartment, and her coach Gaurav Khanna
helped in training and preparing her for the international tournament.
Palak’s father Mahesh Kohli said that Palak used to do training in shifts
during the lockdown period. She used to start her training at 6 am in morning.
Gaurav Khanna has trained her daughter remarkably, said Mahesh Kohli.
#FirstStoryPostive: Meet Jalandhar-based Palak Kohli for whom disability is no deterrent
Since the para badminton category has been included in the Olympics, Palak is the only one from Punjab and the youngest player to qualify for the game.
