Preethi Pal made history at the Paris 2024 Paralympics by becoming the first Indian woman to win two medals in track and field events. On Sunday, she secured her second bronze medal in the women’s 200m T35 category, recording a personal best time of 30.01 seconds.
This remarkable achievement followed her earlier success on Friday, where she won a bronze in the 100m T35 class—India’s first-ever Paralympic track event medal.
In the 200m final, Preethi competed against some of the world’s top athletes. Xia Zhou and Guo Qianqian from China clinched the gold and silver medals, respectively.
Zhou won with a time of 28.15 seconds, while Guo clocked in at 29.09 seconds, also setting a personal best. These same two Chinese athletes had also beaten Preethi in the 100m final, where they dominated the podium, pushing Preethi to the third position once again.
The T35 classification is designed for athletes with coordination impairments like hypertonia, ataxia, or athetosis. These conditions affect muscle control and movement, making Preethi’s achievements all the more inspiring.
She qualified for her debut Paralympic Games by earning a bronze in the women’s 200m T35 event at the World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan, earlier in the year. However, her journey was not without setbacks—she narrowly missed out on a medal at the Asian Para Games in China the previous year.
Determined to improve, Preethi relocated her training base to New Delhi, a move that has clearly paid off with two Paralympic medals now to her name.
After winning her second bronze at Paris 2024, Preethi reflected on her challenging path to success. “This is the result of five years of hard work, but there were people who doubted me, saying that my previous victories were due to luck,” she said.
“Tonight’s win proves that it wasn’t luck alone but sheer determination. I owe it all to my coach, Gaje-bhaiya (Gajendra Singh), who pushed me so hard in training that I remember vomiting from the intensity,” she added, acknowledging the crucial role her coach played in her success.
Preethi’s triumph at Paris 2024 not only marks a personal milestone but also represents a significant achievement for Indian para-athletics, as her back-to-back bronze medals in track events signal India’s growing strength in the sport.
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