Meet world's youngest deputy Chef De Mission who is leading a change in para sports

'I was also a victim of that ignorance years ago', recalls Arhan Bagati, world's youngest Deputy Chef De Mission for the Tokyo Paralympics 2020. While the jubilation surrounding our Olympic stars is reaching a frenzy, para-sports draw a narrow coverage that often limits athletes’ sacrifices made in pursuit of achieving athletic glory. But despite the constraints, Arhan is one of those who is cruising past barriers that keep para-athletes within bounds and guiding them to rise with flying colours.

At 22, the Delhi-born native is one of a rare handful of individuals to transcend the world of para-sports in the country. A goodwill ambassador for the Paralympics since 2015, Arhan's tryst with athletics began in school. During a sports meet hosted by the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) at Delhi's National Stadium in 2014, he met the athletics coach of the national paralympic team who acquainted him with para-sports and the Paralympics. 

"I had not heard about the Paralympics before. People did not know about it, and neither did I. It is not part of our daily conversations. It is normalized to not talk about para-sports. When Satya Ji (Satyanarayana Shimoga) explained about the Paralympic movement, I was inspired, to say the least," Arhan said, in an exclusive interaction with Republic World. 

Arhan Bagati on his motivation behind contributing for Para-sports

Para-athletes most often reveal an existence outside the perceived norm of able-bodied elite athletes. The quest to break down barriers is what makes their pursuits all the more worthwhile, Arhan admitted.

"Able-bodied athletes have their own set of challenges, now if you club those external challenges with other difficulties that a Paralympic athlete faces, you would understand that they have to overcome a herculean feat. It’s very tough. I didn’t know anything about para-sports being an athlete myself, so how would non-athletes be acquainted with it? I thought, if I could address this issue at this age, it will mould into normalisation of para-sports over a period of 20-30 years," he said. 

Staying true to his commitment, Arhan launched an online application, 'InRio', to assist India's Paralympic contingent in Rio 2016. The application included features that provided information about accessibility of places or services for disabled athletes, including facilities where the Indian diaspora in Rio could directly connect with the athletes, in the form of 'supporting, engaging, and bolstering their confidence'. 

'The face of para-sports has changed immensely in India'

However, it seems the positive impact of the Paralympic movement in the context of a behavioural change has already taken effect. The Paralympics has grown into an important vehicle for transforming societal perceptions with several impactful stories on display.

"I think the face of para-sports has changed immensely in India. We had a small contingent at the London Olympics, which increased to 19 in Rio, and then suddenly 54 in Tokyo. Not only that, but we are also expecting some 10-12 medals this time. This, I must say, is an exponential jump. It means people are aware about para-sports, and with the government's support, I think we are headed in the right direction," he signed off.  

Image: Arhan Bagati's Twitter