An engineer, an IAS officer and now a para shuttler — one profession or even two does not seem enough for Suhar Yathiraj.
Born with an ankle impairment, he proves that nothing is impossible if you set your heart to it!
Raised in a small village in Karnataka, his childhood was challenging and full of bullies. Mocked by society and his peers, Suhar found his strength in his father’s backing and faith in his abilities.
With his father’s support, he ignored everyone and focussed only on his dream to make a big impact. A great student, he became an engineer but wanted more. He decided to appear for the civil exams and aced his paper on the first try.
However, badminton changed the course of his fate.
He started playing for local tournaments which turned into national-level competitions, eventually becoming a full-blown career. His passion led him to represent India in the SL-4 category at the Tokyo Paralympics. The 40-year-old is also a recipient of the Arjuna Award.
Managing his duties as an IAS officer and his training, he became the first and only officer to hold a silver medal in the Paralympics. He is now looking forward to making the country proud at the Paris Paralympics. “If I can do it, anyone can,” he says.
(Edited by Padmashree Pande)
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