Sports1 min
Nitesh Kumar wins Asian Para Games gold, thanks father Vijender Singh
After a 2009 train accident cost him a leg, the world No. 1 para-shuttler says his father never let him quit.
Nitesh Kumar came home from the 2026 Asian Para Games with two medals: gold in men's singles SL3 and silver in mixed doubles SL3-SU5. The first person he thanked was his father, Vijender Singh.
In the singles final, Nitesh beat fellow Indian Pramod Bhagat in straight sets. In mixed doubles, he partnered Thulasimathi Murugesan to the silver.
His story starts with a loss. Nitesh lost his left leg in a train accident in 2009. He says his father refused to let him give up in the darkest days and helped him see his situation differently.
That support mattered again when he turned to sport. According to Nitesh, his mother worried that sport might disturb a student who was doing well in studies. His father backed him anyway and kept urging him to give his best.
Nitesh studied electrical engineering at IIT Mandi. He picked up badminton for fun there, with a stable government job as the expected path. He later found para-badminton and chose to go pro after graduating.
Now 31 and world No. 1 in SL3 singles, he called the win over Bhagat special. He described Bhagat as one of the strongest players in the event and mentally the best in the business, so winning in two sets felt like a proud moment.
One gap remains on his résumé: a World Championship gold. He owns two silvers and a bronze from the event, and he says the top prize is what he wants next. The wider picture is bright too, as India finished fourth at the Games in Aichi-Nagoya with a record 114 medals. Read the original report here.
