Para-athlete Soman Rana from Shillong has been selected for the Tokyo Paralympics 2020 in the seated shot put.
Havildar Soman Rana, a 38-year-old para-athlete of the Army Paralympic Node, Bombay Engineering Group (BEG) & Centre, Kirkee (under the aegis of Army Sports Control Board), has been selected in the F57 category.
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Soman Rana is an international para-athlete and stands second in the world rankings in his category.
According to sources, Rana comes from a humble family background.
On December 1, 2006 while serving with his unit in the field area, he suffered a mine blast injury and lost his right leg.
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Losing a leg means an end of the sports journey for most, but Soman Rana fought his fears and kept himself motivated and determined.
Soman Rana was inducted into the Army Paralympic Node in Pune in 2017.
This node provides a platform for all the serving impaired soldiers to pursue para-sports and develop a positive perspective in life.
Since its raising in 2017, para-athletes of the node have won 28 international medals and 60 national medals.
The para-athletes represented India and won medals for the country in Asian Para Games, World Military Games, World Para Championship and World Grand Prix events.
This year, Soman Rana amid all the restrictions won a gold medal in Tunis World Para Athletics Grand Prix and two gold medals & one silver in the XIX National Athletics Para Championship.
“Soman Rana has done our country proud and is an inspiration for all the para-athletes in the Indian Army. He is one of the strong medal prospects to win a medal in the Tokyo Paralympics 2020,” said a press statement.