00:08for Shashwati Vinayak disability has never been a barrier born with a congenital deformity she
00:16learned to walk with prosthetic legs and has spent the last 11 years training to compete at the
00:27highest level based in Bhivani under coach Prashant Karmakar she is now preparing for world championship
00:34qualifiers in Europe I started learning to walk with prosthetic legs for me this is what walking
00:43naturally means I'm into a Paralympic sport triathlon that requires an athlete to complete a 750 meter
00:51swim 20 kilometers of cycling and a 5 kilometer run not many are aware of the sport I wish more
00:59athletes would understand the sport and train in it apart from sports Shashwati is pursuing
01:07postgraduate degree in psychology and also dreams of appearing for the civil services examination
01:16the highest aspiration of a sports person can have is to represent the country
01:21in the Olympics and clinch a medal I too dream of winning a medal for my country in the Paralympics
01:28my coach is my father figure and I get all types of motivation from him if I have to sum
01:35up his role
01:35I would say I would not be an athlete had Prashant sir not been there for me her coach says
01:44the athlete
01:45athlete has already broken barriers and continues to push herself despite major challenges
01:53she is a wonderful athlete who has represented India at the Asian Games just last month she won a
02:00bronze medal at the swimming world cup and she is leaving for Germany on July 8 to compete in the
02:07qualifier for the world championships she is the first athlete from India to compete at this level not just
02:14among para athletes but even compared to able-bodied athletes but reaching the elite level comes at a
02:23huge cost from specialized prosthetic limbs to world-class sporting equipment no one in India could
02:34manufacture the specific type of prosthetic she needed for running eventually we had to get
02:39it made in the US and it cost around 20 lakhs her bicycle cost between 12 lakhs and 14 lakhs
02:46her father
02:48had exhausted his life savings and I have nearly depleted mine as well but I have a conviction that my
02:54student will win an Olympic medal driven by determination backed by sacrifice and guided by belief Shashwati Vinayak
03:05continues her quest for a place on the Paralympic podium and a medal for India
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