When Jhandu Kumar's name echoed through the arena after he secured India's first medal of the Commonwealth Games, it carried a weight far greater than the bronze hanging around his neck. "Jhandu" was a name thrust upon him after his parents spent everything they had trying to cure his polio.Today, the name has made India proud.The 28-year-old para powerlifter from Bihar clinched the men's heavyweight bronze on Friday with a total of 130.9 points after successful lifts of 181kg and 190kg.His bold attempt at 196kg, which could have propelled him into contention for a higher medal, ended in disappointment."The happiness is overwhelming. I haven't been able to sleep since last night… Even when I lie down, sleep just doesn't come," he told reporters during a SAI interaction.The failed final lift, however, does not haunt him."I took the first lift safely. If I had taken the first lift harder, and if I had failed, there would have been a problem for me. The confidence would have been down. My aim was to pass the first lift. After that, the second lift was to get into medal tally. The third lift was for the gold medal."I could not get the gold medal. It was a technical fault. I made a mistake in my breathing in haste. When I was going up, I did the lift right. But when I went out, it (barbell) got stuck in the rack."Long before he was calculating medal-winning attempts, the Bihar power lifter was fighting battles far away from the sporting arena.Polio and tauntsPolio had struck him when he was five."My family says that I got polio when I was 5 years old. I had to sit down and walk… People used to taunt me. They used to say, 'Now that he has become disabled, what will…
This report has been adapted by the PurePlay Sports Desk from coverage by The Bridge, NDTV Sports.