Sambalpur (Odisha), Sept 4 (PTI) Attabira, a non-descript small town in western Odisha's Bargarh district erupted in joy on Saturday as the entire state celebrated when Pramod Bhagat, the son of the soil won gold in the men's singles badminton event at the Tokyo Paralympics.

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Atabira is the hometown of Pramod, a Arjuna awardee, who bagged gold after beating Great Britain's Daniell Bethell.

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The residents of the town from the children to the elderly came down to the streets holding placards, burst fire crackers, hugged each other and distributed sweets among themselves to celebrate the feat.

A beaming Siba Prasad Das, the Olympian's coach, said, “The dream has come true. Pramod has done it. I had categorically told him to complete the match in two sets and not wait till the third one. And he followed the advice.”

Rabi Panda, a resident of the town and a sports organsier said Pramod has made Attabira and the entire Bargarh district proud by winning the gold at the Tokyo Paralympics. Though he was struggling for money, he did not allow it to affect him.

"Entire Bargarh district is celebrating his grand success. Because of his relentless struggle, he could achieve success and set inspiration for others,” he said.

Pramod's family has a very weak financial condition. His father Kailash Bhagat is a driver in a rice mill in Attabira and his mother Kusum devi is a housewife.

He had graduated in humanities from Attabira College and had worked in a fan repairing shop in the town. But he did not let his financial condition stop him from dreaming, said his brother Sekhar.

"Since the financial condition of my family was not so sound, my father was always asking Pramod to concentrate on studies instead of badminton. My father would tell him that studying would get him a job. But nothing could stop Pramod from pursuing his passion.

"I remember how he would go to play badminton without telling anyone at home and how he would be scolded by my father. Father passed away in 2007 and Mother in 2020. Had they been alive, they would have been very happy,” he said.

Pramod had begun participating in state-level games since the age of 10. He would participate in many tournaments and despite being differently-abled, he performed outstandingly in them, Sekhar recounted.

He has bagged more than 30 gold medals in national and international games.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)