Satyapal Singh

Satyapal Singh has spent nearly two decades coaching India’s para-athletes, many of whom have gone on to win medals around the world. In 2025 he was named for the Padma Shri in the field of sports, from Uttar Pradesh ^[1].

From athlete to coach

Singh was born on 1 January 1978 in Machhri, a village in Ghaziabad district ^[2]. A former national-level athlete with 19 university medals, he earned a doctorate and qualifications in coaching and yoga, and began coaching in 2004 ^[2]. In 2007 he took up coaching para-athletes ^[2].

Building a team

As chief coach of India’s para-athletics team for 15 years, his athletes brought home medals at every level: four at the Paralympics, six at World Championships and eighteen at the Asian Para Games ^[2]. His trainees include Paralympic medallist Praveen Kumar, and seven have received the Arjuna Award, among them India’s first blind Arjuna awardee ^[2]. He has also paid for training, food and equipment for athletes who could not afford them ^[2].

In 2012 he became the youngest coach to receive the Dronacharya Award ^[2].