Deepthi Jeevanji

2024 Paralympics Winner (Bronze Medal, 400m T20)

We at ICCL India Foundation (ICCL-IF) are delighted and honored to have supported our Deepthi Jeevanji Para Athlete journey. Deepthi has continued to inspire by winning 2024 Paralympics, Paris Bronze Medal (Women’s 400m T20 final race) recently and becoming the first intellectually impaired Indian athlete to win a Paralympic medal.

Deepthi comes from a very remote small village (Kallada, Warangal District), Telangana State and born to a daily-waged labour parents working at other’s farms. She suffered from intellectual disability right from her childhood and faced significant challenges, facing insults/mockeries in the society. Villagers urged her parents to abandon her due to her features and to sent her to an orphanage. Deepthi parents (Jeevanji Yadhagiri and Jeevanji Dhanalaxmi) who stood by her through thick and thin and never stopped supporting her.

Deepthi talent was spotted by her school PET teacher and later came under coach N Ramesh (Indian coach for Junior team) when she was 15yrs old and her journey has been one of relentless progress. She was also supported by Pullela Gopichand (former Indian Badminton player and now chief national coach) suggested to have Deepthi tested at National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Intellectual Disability, Hyderabad. Here she was certified under the mentally impaired category and allowed her to participate as para-athlete.

It was her family support that helped overcome all the challenges and continued to shine in sports and achieving medals. Today seeing her become the world champion proves that she is indeed a special girl with immense talent. None had even thought that Deepthi would become a world champion and making the nation proud on the global sports arena.
Deepthi knows only ‘How to Run’ and the Running is her life. Unmindful of her all drawbacks and setbacks, she has shown to the world sports lovers that nothing is bane or hurdle in the way of vigorous efforts to achieve the determined goals.

Recently, Deepthi bought back the land her parents had sold eight years ago to fund her training. This one-acre plot in Kalleda village (Warangal) was sold by her daily-wager parents to support her athletic journey. By repurchasing the land, Deepthi expressed her gratitude for her parents sacrifices and never giving up on her.
Deepthi has set a world record of 55.07 secs at the Para Athletics 2024 World Championships (400m T20) in Kobe, Japan securing gold medal. She has earlier set an Asian record of 56.18 secs securing her place in the finals of the Women’s 400m T20 heat.
ICCL India Foundation (ICCL-IF) shall continue to support her moving forward in achieving many more successes and inspiring our next generation talented para-athletes and our communities for more inclusion and prosperity.
Paris 2024 Paralympics (News Article) – 4 Sep 2024:
https://olympics.com/en/news/paris-2024-paralympics-athletics-india-deepthi-jeevanji-400m-bronze-medal
Telangana Today (News Article) – 24 Aug 2024:
https://telanganatoday.com/iccl-if-to-support-telangana-para-athlete-deepthi-for-paris-paralympics
NDTV SPORTS (News Article) – 10 Sep 2024:
https://sports.ndtv.com/paralympic-games-2024/neighbours-called-me-a-monkey-deepthi-jeevanji-on-tough-road-to-paris-paralympics-2024-medal-6527513
Deepthi Jeevanji (Wikipedia):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepthi_Jeevanji