Berlin, 23 June (HS). Golfers Ranveer Saini and Rahul Agarwal won gold medals in the Level 1 golf event of the Special Olympics World Games 2023. Ranveer and Rahul played four rounds of golf (optional shot team play) over four days at the Arnold Palmer Course in Berlin and topped the leaderboard on all four days. He won the gold medal by a record-breaking margin of 18 shots.
SO one of India’s most accomplished athletes, Saini has been integral to India’s success at the World Games. At the age of 17, he won India’s first gold medal in this event at the 2015 Los Angeles Games. Even after eight years, he has not given up.
Diagnosed with autism at a young age, Saini began playing golf with the encouragement of his mother, Bakhtwar Saini, to help keep him busy. It was a natural choice as Bakhtawar himself played the game and Ranveer’s uncle Jeev Milkha Singh is one of the greatest golfers India has ever produced.
India won 21 medals on Thursday in Berlin and the Indian contingent has so far won 76 medals (26 gold, 30 silver, 20 bronze) in this competition.
In judo, Suhaliya Parveen won a silver medal, India’s first in the event. At the same time, medals are coming continuously in powerlifting, already 20 medals have come in this sport. V. Harish and Siya Sarode added four gold medals to that tally. Harish won gold medals in squat, bench press and combined events while Siya won gold in squat.
India has also won 17 medals in roller skating. Angelina Marie Pausin, who missed out on a medal in the 500m, finished on the podium by winning the silver in the 100m.
On the tennis court, India’s Swaraj Singh and Lavlesh Sharma square off in the semifinals of Level X. Swaraj won the match 6-3, 6-2 to enter the final. Lovelace will have a chance to return in the bronze medal match on June 23.
