Harvinder Singh created history at the Paralympics as he got India its first gold in para-archery.

He defeated Lukasz Ciszek of Poland 6-0 in the final of the Men's Individual Recurve Open to win India’s 4th gold medal at the Paris Paralympics 2024.

Harvinder has made it a habit to make India proud as he won India’s first ever medal in archery at the Tokyo Paralympics.

Hailing from a farming family in Kaithal district, Haryana, the 33-year-old lost some movement in his  legs at 18 months.

Diagnosed with dengue, his parents took him to a doctor, who administered an injection that affected his left leg. 

Wise beyond his years, he told his parents that he didn’t need more treatment.

“I accepted my fate because if I’m happy, then I do not need more treatment. I told my parents that I do not need more treatment, I am OK and I accept my disability,” Singh told paralympic.org.

He focused on his education and completed a PhD in economics. He first saw archers training at the Punjab University.

Watching the London Olympics in 2012 motivated him to go and try his hands at archery, while pursuing his doctorate.

He won gold at the 2018 Asian para games, but it was an emotionally challenging time for him as he lost his mother 20 days before the competition.

He also overcame the challenge of training during COVID-19 thanks to his father who transformed their farm into a shooting range.

He balanced his education and training — coming on top in both!

“It is really difficult to manage this but actually I like these hurdles. Challenges are just a part of life and we come to know how strong we are when we face challenges,” he told paralmpyic.org