Who is Sidhartha Babu? All you need to know about Indian para shooter competing at Paris 2024 Paralympics
Indian para shooter Sidhartha Babu, hailing from Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, will represent India in shooting at the Paris 2024 Paralympics in R3 - Mixed 10 metre air rifle prone SH1 and R6 - 50 m Rifle Prone SH1 events.
Sidhartha made the cut for the Paris 2024 Paralympics after bagging a gold medal in the mixed 50m Rifle Prone SH1 event at the Asian Para Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China, and also created the Asian Para Games record.
Currently residing in Bengaluru, Sidhartha was a martial arts enthusiast, teaching karate at the age of 19. However, a few years later, he met with an accident that paralyzed him. Subsequently, he decided to take up shooting and tried his luck at a rifle club in Idukki, Kerala.
Sidhartha learned the basics of shooting after reading books from the library, making him a self-taught shooter. Despite his physical shortcomings, Sidhartha learned a sport that requires high levels of concentration, precision, and calmness.
First taste of success
He went on to win a gold medal in the 50m men's prone air rifle shooting event in the Kerala State Shooting Championship in 2016. Interestingly, that was the first time a differently-abled shooter won the competition, taking part in the event alongside mainstream shooters.
He went on to win gold medals in the same event in 2017 and 2018 as well making it a hat-trick. Notably, Sidhartha Babu also holds a national record from 2014 in the 50m Prone Rifle Para Category. He broke the record himself in between 2017 and 2018.
Later, he also secured a team bronze medal for India in the Para Shooting World Cup 2017 in Thailand. In 2018, he took up training under Olympic champion Sergei Martinov and competed at Para Shooting World Championships 2019 in Sydney, Australia.
Sidhartha Babu’s Paralympics debut
After his impressive performance in Australia, he earned a spot in the Tokyo Paralympics in 2021. He made his Paralympics debut, representing India in the mixed 50m rifle-prone SH1 event.
At the Asian Para Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China, Sidhartha Babu bagged a gold medal in the mixed 50m rifle-prone SH1 event, creating a new Asian Para Games record.