Chandigarh: At five, Mohd Yasser (32) lost his left hand after putting it into a chaff-cutting machine, leaving his family anxious about his future. Twenty-eight years later, they were celebrating his second Asian Para Games medal in shot put on Tuesday.For his father, Sudagar Khan, the journey has been extraordinary. “We are from a simple farming family. Yasser was playing near the chaff-cutter and his uncle was operating it. When his uncle stopped picking up the fodder remnants, Yasser put his hand into the machine,” Khan told TOI.The accident left the family devastated, but Yasser went on to carve out a career in sport. “I am extremely proud of him for winning a silver medal for India. This is his best performance at the Asian Games so far, and we hope he reaches greater heights,” Khan said.The family learnt of Yasser’s medal through a friend who was watching the competition and called his father. By the time Yasser called home before the medal ceremony, his parents were already in tears, overwhelmed with pride and happiness.The journey to the podium came at a cost. Khan said he had to borrow money during the early years of his son’s sporting career. Things have since stabilised, with Yasser supporting himself through his Punjab govt job and sponsorships.‘Divine intervention’Through the difficult years, coach Harminderpal Singh Ghuman stood by the athlete and his family.Ghuman first spotted Yasser around 2015-16 at an athletics meet at a govt college in Malerkotla. Although he had not seen Yasser compete, what he described as “divine intervention” prompted him to approach the youngster and ask about his ambitions.“Yasser did not have direction then. I told him that day, ‘If you want to excel in life, come and report to the ground at 4pm’,” Ghuman told TOI. “When I reached the ground at 4pm, he was already sitting there. He told me he had not even gone home and had been waiting. I realised he had immense dedication,” he recalled.The partnership yielded a national gold medal in the first year. Since then, Ghuman has guided Yasser through the highs and lows of his career.This time, the target was gold. Ghuman said Yasser had consistently thrown beyond 16 metres in practice, but a technical error affected his final three attempts at the games. His best throw was 15.06 metres.“Our preparation was exceptionally good. We were focused on bringing home gold,” Ghuman said, adding that the silver was a milestone, not the destination.Yasser the fighterAt the 2023 Asian Para Games, Yasser fell ill two days before his event and could not perform to his potential. The disappointment was so intense that neither athlete nor coach felt ready to return to the training ground for days.“But a true sportsperson is defined by the comeback, rising again, fighting again and standing tall,” Ghuman said. “Yasser bounced back. He is a fighter. This medal has proved it.”Yasser told TOI he had achieved what he had set his mind on and was confident of realising his Paralympic dream. “My happiness is impossible to contain,” he said.His success is already inspiring young athletes in Malerkotla. Ghuman said several children had taken up the sport after watching Yasser’s journey, with youngsters going on to win medals at junior Asian, junior world and youth Asian events, besides national competitions.‘Malerkotla’s strength lies in sporting talent and communal harmony’For Ghuman, Malerkotla’s strength lies not only in its sporting talent but also in its communal harmony. A Sikh coach guiding a Muslim athlete, he said, had never been an issue.“In Malerkotla, Muslims are in the majority, but there is never any division on the basis of religion. I am a Sikh and he is a Muslim, but when it comes to sport, religion has no place,” he said.
