Devendra Jhajharia
A javelin thrower from Churu, the first Indian para-athlete with two Paralympic golds, who added silver in Tokyo; Padma Bhushan, 2022.
Devendra Jhajharia throws the javelin in para-athletics, and no Indian para-athlete before him had won Paralympic gold twice. He was named for the Padma Bhushan in 2022 in the field of sports, from Rajasthan [1].
Losing a hand, finding a sport
Jhajharia was born on 10 June at Jaipuria Khalsa in Churu district [2]. At eight he lost his left hand in an accident, which left him shattered [2]. He chose to take up sport as a challenge and set his sights on the javelin [2].
Two golds and a silver
He won his first national gold at the national championship in Bangalore in 2001, and his first international gold at the FESPIC Games in South Korea in 2002 [2]. At the British Open in 2003 he won gold in the javelin, triple jump and shot put [2].
He won Paralympic gold in the javelin at Athens in 2004 and again at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 [2]. In between he won world championship gold in Lyon in 2013 and silver in Doha in 2015 [2]. At the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics he took silver, becoming the first Indian para-athlete with two golds and a silver [2].
He has received the Arjuna Award and the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, India’s highest sporting honour [2].
Sources
- [1] Padma Awards 2022: list of awardees — Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Accessed 24 October 2026.
- [2] Padma Awards 2022: citation for Devendra Jhajharia — Padma Awards, Government of India. Accessed 24 October 2026.
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