T Mariyappan presented with 2 crores by Tamil Nadu government

Mariyappan, 21, who cleared 1.89 m to win the high jump event at Rio Paralympics, hails from Salem district in Tamil Nadu.

He was only five when his right leg was crushed by a speeding bus while he was on his way to school. However, that did not stop him from achieving his dream and became only the third Indian to win a gold medal at the Paralympics. The late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had announced in September that the athlete would be rewarded for his exceptional performance.

Panneerselvam also handed a Rs 2 crore cheque to the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association, represented by its president MA Alagappan, as the government's contribution for the ATP Chennai Open that is scheduled to kick off on Jan 2. The TN government is the 'Lead Platinum Sponsor'of the tournament, that started way back in 1997, an official release said.

India’s only ATP event has seen the likes of Carlos Moya, Milos Raonic and Stan Wawrinka emerge winners but came under financial troubles in 2012 and the organisers made a plea to Jayalalithaa for financial assistance. Since then the TN government has been allocating an annual sum of Rs 2 crore to the tournament.