Hokato Sema, army man injured in mine blast, wins shot put bronze, says inspired by Neeraj Chopra

At the World Championships in May, Sema had finished fourth but four months later he wasn’t going to be denied a podium place in Paris.

As someone who turned to sport after turning 30, Sema is no stranger to biding his time. Hailing from Dimapur in Nagaland, Sema was born into a farmer’s family as the second of four children.

The dream for Sema was always to join special forces of the Indian army.

But two months before he turned 19, during a Counter Infiltration Operation in Jammu and Kashmir’s Chowkibal, a mine blast led to Sema, then a lance naik, losing his left leg below the knee.

His journey to becoming a para athlete began at the Army Paralympic Node, BEG Centre in Pune. According to PTI, senior army officials at the Pune-based Artificial Limb Centre encouraged Sema to take up shot put after seeing his fitness. And it was only in 2016, at the ripe old age of 32, that his serious tryst with sport began. And in eight short years, he was on the podium in Paris.

Medal dedicated to wife

After the bronze, Sema took a minute to remember the tough times. “This medal is for my wife,” he said. “She has sacrificed a lot for me. She has often starved, so that I could eat and continue training because we didn’t have enough money to ensure two square meals a day. She has been my biggest pillar of support. She has picked me up every time I felt like giving up. Without her, I would not have been on the podium today.”

On Friday night it was a two-horse race between Finland’s Teijo Koopikka, the man who beat him to bronze at the World Championships, and Sema. The top two spots were all but decided early on. Yasin Khosravi and Thiago Paulino dos Santos threw 15.96m (Paralympics Record) and 15.06m respectively. Khosravi and dos Santos had finished 1-2 at the World Championships earlier this year, so this was always on the cards.

Sema came into the F57 Final with a Personal Best of 14.49m. It is an event where athletes have to be harnessed to a throwing chair, so all six attempts would be taken together in one go. If someone after you throws farther, then tough luck, you have no chance to return and aim farther. Once the Finnish athlete Koopikka was done with his six throws with a best of 14.18, Sema – going after him – knew he had a bronze medal in his sights. He moved into third position with 14.40 off his third throw, and then upgraded it to a new PB of 14.65m to all but seal the third spot.

Sema also spoke about how he found inspiration from a familiar force. “As an army man, I felt if Neeraj Chopra could do it for the Indian Army and for India as an able-bodied athlete, as a para athlete from the Indian army, why can’t I?”

“This medal means a lot to me. I am representing India and the Indian Army, because I serve the army back home,” he added. “I am filled with joy as I have done it for them and also for Nagaland, where I am from.”

It signified a wonderful moment in India’s Paralympics campaign. In a tournament where a 17-year-old armless archer in Sheetal Devi won a bronze medal on debut and became a global sensation, there was also a platform for a 40-year-old debutant from Nagaland to fulfill his dream of seeing the tricolour flying high. It just so happened to be at a grand athletics stadium in Paris.