Haryana’s Sirsa and Fatehabad districts, long known for agriculture strength and politics influence, are increasingly making their mark in sports, with two athletes from humble rural backgrounds recently bringing glory to the state and the country.
Para-athlete Pramod Bijarania from Nahrana village in Sirsa district won a gold medal at the 8th National Para Athletics Championship in Bengaluru, while high jumper Pooja from Bosti village in Fatehabad clinched a gold at the 22nd Asian Under-20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, breaking the 14-year-old national record in the process.
Pramod’s journey is one of resilience and determination. He lost an arm in an accident involving a fodder-cutting machine while he was helping his family in the fields. The setback left his family devastated, but Pramod refused to give up. He continued his education, completed his schooling and graduation and turned to sports as a way to rebuild his life.
He initially trained at Shaheed Bhagat Singh Stadium in Sirsa and made a breakthrough in 2021 when he won a gold in the 800m event and a bronze in the 1,500m race at the National Para Athletics Championship in Bengaluru. Since then, he has emerged as one of Haryana’s leading para athletes.
Pramod’s biggest achievement came at the 2023 Hangzhou Para Asian Games, China, where he won a silver medal in the 1,500m race for India. His latest gold medal in Bengaluru has further strengthened his reputation as one of the country’s promising para-athletes.
“Nothing is impossible if a person continues to work hard and never loses courage,” Pramod said, while crediting his family, coach and federation for supporting him throughout his journey. He now dreams of winning a gold for India at the biggest international events.
Mason’s daughter strikes Asian gold
Fatehabad’s Pooja has scripted her own success story. The daughter of a mason and a homemaker, she cleared 1.93m in the high jump event at the Asian Under-20 Championships, surpassing the previous national record of 1.92m set by Sahana Kumari in 2012.
Competing against some of Asia’s best young athletes, Pooja finished ahead of China’s Maiki Chen to win the gold medal. She narrowly missed the championship record of 1.95m by just 2cm.
Pooja’s coach, Balwan, said she narrowly missed the championship record of 1.95m, set in 1999, by just 2cm.
Pooja comes from a humble background. Her father, Hansraj, works as a mason, while her mother, Kiran, a homemaker. Despite limited resources, she has achieved success through years of hard work and dedication.
Pooja began training at the age of 10 under coach Balwan at Parta village. In the absence of modern facilities, she practised by making jumping pits from grass, crop residue and thermocol sheets. Her talent earned national recognition early and in 2022 she set a national record at the Under-16 Athletics Championships.
Now, training at a national camp in Bengaluru, Pooja has set her sights on bigger international competitions.