Harvinder Singh is an Indian para archer who achieved the historical feat of becoming the first Indian to win a medal in archery at a Paralympics when he won a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
Wiki/Biography
Harvinder Singh Dhanju was born in 1990 (age 31 years; as of 2021) in Guhla Cheeka village, Kaithal, Haryana. Born to a middle-class farming family in Haryana, he did his primary schooling in Guhla Cheeka, a small village near Kaithal. He studied in a village school until the 10th standard, and then he went to Kaithal city to continue his studies. After completing his bachelor’s and master’s at Punjabi University in Patiala, Harvinder started pursuing PhD (Economics) at the same university.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 9″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Parents & Siblings
Harvinder Singh’s father, Paramjeet Singh, is a farmer. His mother’s name is Late Harbhajan Kaur. Harvinder has an elder brother, who lives along with him in Kaithal, Haryana.
Career
After winning many medals at various state and national-level tournaments, the 2017 World Archery Para Championships, held in Beijing, gave him a chance to represent India for the first time at an international competition; he placed 7th overall. Harvinder Singh became the first athlete from India to win a gold medal at a major para competition when he won the Men’s Individual Recurve Open category at the Asian Para Games in 2018. In a tweet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated him for his achievement.
Harvinder Singh's masterful archery skills and his relentless hardwork have brought India a Gold Medal in the Men's Individual Recurve Open event at Asian Para Games 2018. Congrats Harvinder! We are proud of you! pic.twitter.com/45AJmLMRu6
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 16, 2018
Following his participation in the 2019 World Archery Para Championships held in the Netherlands, he qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. Harvinder bagged India’s first-ever paralympic archery medal on 3 September 2021, after he lost to world number 10 Kevin Mather of the USA 6-4 in the semifinals.
Medals
- 2016: Bronze at the National Para Archery Tournament in Rohtak
- 2018: Gold at the 2018 Asian Para Games, held in Indonesia
- 2019: Bronze at the Asian Para Archery Championships, held in Thailand
- 2021: Bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics
Facts/Trivia
- When he was just one year old, a doctor gave him an injection after he contracted dengue that caused his legs to stop working properly, which was an adverse reaction to the injection.
- He became inspired to take up archery after watching the 2012 London Olympics archery events.
- During his graduation at Punjabi University in Patiala, he began attending training sessions on the ground.