He promised a medal, brought home two

Nine-year-old Mahavir, who is looked after by the Missionaries of Charity, was part of the Indian team that returned last night with a record haul of 110 medals (34 golds). . The Special Olympics, held every four years, are open to the physically and mentally challenged of all ages.

When the flight landed at New Delhi’s IGI Airport at midnight there were no ministers, politicians and the usual hoi polloi on hand to greet the 83-member contingent — wide-eyed and wildly excited despite the long journey and the late hour.

But those at Indira Gandhi International Airport weren’t entirely unaware of their achievements. One of the officials who’d travelled with the team told The Indian Express: ‘‘An immigration official asked me, ‘Isn’t this the team which won so many medals recently’.’’

While everyone in the Indian team was a hero, Mahavir, its youngest member, stood out for his smiling face and obvious pluck. His smile grew broader when, at 1-30 a.m., he finally met his personal reception committee: three nuns from the Missionaries of Charity and his close friends from the Jeevan Jyoti orphanage Kishore, Santosh, Pankaj and Prince.

‘‘For the last two days, these boys have been very excited and they were desperate to come to the airport. Pankaj, who suffers from a speech and hearing problem, but is the smartest in his batch, signalled with his hand that he wanted to come along’’, one of the nuns said.

Mahavir had been adopted by the Missionaries more than five years ago after he was found, abandoned, by NGO volunteers. ‘‘He is a naughty child but very talented in music and sports. We jokingly asked him what would be bring for us from Dublin and he said he would bring a gold medal’’, said the senior nun.Coming up for Mahavir is a ‘surprise’ party thrown by the nuns on Saturday, when the schools are shut — including St Mary’s, where Mahavir studies.

Winning, though, wasn’t the theme of the tournament. Avtar Singh, one of the Indian team coaches, recalled an incident in one race. ‘‘The person who was leading the race slipped and fell down. The person behind stopped to help him and escorted him to the side, forgotting about winning himself. It’s rarely seen in normal conditions.’’

And, in yet another sign that the Indian public is appreciating efforts in sports other than cricket, Petroleum Minister Ram Naik announced cash prizes worth Rs. 1 crore for the medal-winners. The money, from the oil industry, will mean Rs 1 lakh for each gold-medal winner, Rs 50,000 for a silver winner and Rs 25,000 for a bronze medalist.