Sidhartha Babu wants to be an inspiration as he takes aim in Paris Paralympics

KOCHI: Sidhartha Babu, the oldest member of India's Paralympic contingent in Paris, likes to fly under the radar. The 45-year-old, who made his Paralympic debut in Tokyo three years back, came up with a record-breaking performance in the mixed 50m rifle prone SH-1 event in the Asian Para Games in Hangzhou last year to book his ticket to Paris.

Yet not many in Mudavanmugal in Thiruvananthapuram, where he has been residing for the last two years, and the shooting range in Vattiyoorkavu, where he trains, know that Babu is a Paralympian. "At the Vattiyoorkavu shooting range, the staff and fellow shooters think that I'm a handicapped person who is just passionate about shooting. Can't blame them as the range does not even have a picture of me," Babu told TOI from Paris.

However, all this could change in the coming days as he is set to compete in two events in Paris -- the R3-Mixed 10m air rifle prone on Sunday and the R6-Mixed 50m rifle prone under the SH1 category on Thursday. The experienced shooter feels he can do better than Tokyo this time around. "I deserve a good result in Paris. It's not about the medal. But I have worked so hard for this, and I hope my hard work will pay off at the Paris Games," Babu said.

Babu's silver-medal winning performance in the National Shooting Championship held in New Delhi, competing alongside renowned shooters like Swapnil Kusale and Chain Singh, has come as a confidence-booster.

Babu's journey as a self-taught and self-coached athlete is remarkable. Babu was bedridden since 19 after he met with an accident. But he overcame that adversity by learning the sport of shooting through books. His determination and resilience led him to design his own wheelchair that helped him hit the bull's eye at the shooting range. Babu, however, doesn't like to talk too much about his physical disability and doesn't want people to sympathise with his plight.

"I don't usually talk about my past. I like to talk about the present and future," Babu said. "I always say to people that I don't want their sympathy, but I want their cheer, I want them to be my fans. I want them to look at me as a hero, I want them to gain inspiration from my achievements," he added.


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