Asian Games 2018 | Tajinder Pal Singh Toor dedicates shot put gold to ailing father suffering from cancer

The 23-year-old threw the iron ball to 20.75m to win the gold and set a national record bettering the six-year-old record of 20.69m. Tejinder lived up to the billing of being the strongest contender as he was the season leader among the Asian athletes in this event. His earlier personal best was 20.24m which he came up with last year.

However, Tuesday’s gold was a son’s gift to his father who had encouraged him to take up shot put. Tajinder’s uncle Gurdev Singh, who was a shot putter himself, revealed that the 23-year-old was interested in cricket initially, but was insisted to take up shot put by his father.

“Like most Indian boys, he (Tajinder) was initially interested in cricket but Sardar ji insisted he should try an individual sport. I was actively involved in shot put. And that’s how it happened to Tajinder,” Gurdev told TOI.

However, the talented shot putter from Punjab had to struggle a lot over the years considering his humble background with a meagre means of income. Speaking of which Tajinder said he has to invest a lot on a monthly basis considering the demands of the sport at the international level.

“I took up the sport in 2006. As I started doing well and reached the international level, the expenses went through the roof. For example, the shoes are really expensive. The ones that we wear for competitions cost around Rs 10,000 and they don’t last more than 2 months. There is so much wear and tear that one needs to change the shoes very often," Tajinder said.

“The monthly expenses on equipment, shoes and a professional training centre come to around Rs 50,000. Then a shot putter needs to take extra care of his body, maintain a very strict diet regimen, buy high quality food supplements. All this costs a lot of money," he added.

Tajinder is an employee of the Indian Navy which has been taking care of his father’s medical expenses. In 2015, his father was diagnosed with a form of skin cancer, which was cured as it was in the first stage. However, a year later Sardar was diagnosed with bone cancer (fourth stage). Thankfully for the family, Tajinder got a job with the Navy at that time. Gurdev further thanked the Navy for helping his family during the difficult phase.

“The biggest help for our family has come from the Indian Navy. It has been taking care of all the expenses, which has ensured that Tajinder focuses only on his game and trains peacefully,” Gurdev added.