Fireman bags 4 gold medals at int’l games

Chennai: Fireman Mariyappan Murugadoss, 22, has bagged four gold medals at the international athlete competitions for fire and rescue services personnel in Denmark.He won gold medals in 200 metres, 400 metres, 800 metres, and 1,500 metres categories at the World Firefighters Games-2024 held at Aalborg, Denmark, on Sept 9 and 11.Mariyappan Murugadoss, a fireman at Tondiarpet fire station, had earlier won three gold medals at the state-level athlete meet for under-20 and under-21 category.At least 3,000 firefighters from all over the world attended the event held from Sept 7 to Sept 14. There were more than 40 events, including marathon, tug-of-war, beach volleyball, swimming, water rescue, track and field, and stair-run competition.The World Firefighters Games has been held since 1990 where the first host city was Auckland, New Zealand. Mariyappan, a native of Nanjamkulam, Maanur near Thalaiyuthu in Tirunelveli, joined as a fireman in the 2022 batch, even while he was pursuing his degree course at Sathakathullah Appa College in Tirunelveli.His younger brother Mathesh told TOI: "My brother discontinued his studies while studying first year at the college, and joined as a fireman." Mariyappan showed interest in athletics and played Kabaddi at district level when he was doing his higher secondary course at St Mary's School.His father Murugadoss, a mason, and mother Mariammal, a beedi maker, live at their house in Nanjamkulam. Mariyappan has two younger brothers — Mathesh and Mathankumar. They are school students.The fire services director Abash Kumar appreciated the fireman for his excellence. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Valentine's day wishes, messages and quotes !