BD NarayankarBengaluru, July 30 -- A fall from a mango tree took away Dilip Mahadu Gavit's right arm before he was old enough to understand what he had lost. On Thursday, the tribal farmer's son from Maharashtra made the Commonwealth Games remember what he had found - blistering speed.
The 23-year-old para sprinter from Toran Dongri village near Nashik stormed to the men's 100m T47 gold medal in a Games record 10.71 seconds, leading India to a historic one-two finish with Kerala's Mohammed Basil taking silver in 10.83 seconds.
For Gavit, the victory was far more than another medal. It was the culmination of a journey that began in hardship. Born into a modest farming family, he spent his childhood helping his parents in the fields. At the...