Sakina Khatun

Khatun was affiliated with polio since she was young. Her father worked as a marginal farmer and the family faced many difficulties financially. Khatun was passionate about sports from a very young. This passion pushed her to continue her journey with sports. She had to undergo 4 surgeries due to her health conditions and to survive polio.[4] As swimming helps strengthen most muscles in body, she was suggested by doctors to take up swimming to recover from the medical procedure. It was then that her journey with sports began.[4] In an interview with YourStory,[4] Khatun recollects.

“Swimming definitely turned out to be an amazing experience for me. But I could not make it through either competitions or national-level championships. Then, I happened to meet Farman Basha, one the most renowned powerlifters of India. He put the thought of powerlifting in my head.”

Khatun has completed her schooling from Kabiriya High School, Madrasa. She started training in powerlifting after completing her class 12th in 2010. Her training sessions would began in the morning and would last from two hours. She would again train for two hours in the evening.[4] She says:[4]

“Considering my fragile health condition, I had to take many precautions initially. However, I went the extra mile to achieve greater heights. I did not want to be any other sportsperson. I wanted to make it to the big league. I wanted to represent my country.”

She was selected for Commonwealth Games in 2014 and finished 3rd in the women's lightlifting category (up to 61 kg) after lifting a total weight of 88.2 kg.[4]

• Khatun is the only Indian woman para athlete in Indian history to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games.[4]
• Bronze medal at Glasgow in, 2014.[4]
• Silver Medal in Asian Pra Games, 2018.[4]
• Sixth position at the World Championships, 2019.[4]