Sandeep, Deepa headline Differently-abled Athlete of the Year nominations

ESPN staffFeb 28, 2019, 08:34 AM

From the inspirational Ekta Bhyan winning multiple international medals to Deepa Malik's continued show of dominance, 2018 was the year of success stories that went beyond conventions. Here are the nominees for the Differently-abled Athlete of the Year.

Amit Kumar Saroha

Paralympian club and discus thrower Amit Kumar Saroha won gold at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Tunis, Tunisia in June 2018.

Deepa Malik

The first woman from India to have medalled at the Paralympic Games in 2016, Deepa Malik picked up two bronze medals in para-athletics at the Para Asian Games in 2018. She finished third in the women's javelin throw (F53/54) and also won bronze in the discus throw (F51/52/53).

Ekta Bhyan

Ekta Bhyan won gold in club throw and bronze in discus in the F-51 category at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Tunisia in 2018. In addition, she also picked up the club throw gold at the Para Asian Games.

Sandeep Chaudhary

Sandeep Chaudhary brought home India's first gold medal at last year's Asian Para Games in Jakarta, setting a new world record in the javelin throw. With a best throw of 60.01m in his third attempt, he broke the then world record in the F44 category (for para athletes affected by limb deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement and competing without prosthesis) set by China's Mingjie Gao in 1980.

Sharad Kumar

A high jumper in the T-42 category, Sharad Kumar picked up gold in the event (T 42/63) at the Para Asian Games in 2018, retaining his feat from the Incheon Games of 2014.

Suyash Jadhav

Double-amputee swimmer Suyash Jadhav picked up a rich haul of medals for India at the Para Asian Games -- gold in the men's 50m butterfly S-7, and bronze in both the men's 200m individual medley SM7 and the men's 50m freestyle S7.