News Sports Other Rio Paralympics gold winner Mariyappan gets Rs 2 cr incentive

Rio Paralympics gold winner Mariyappan gets Rs 2 cr incentive

T Mariyappan, who raised Indian flag high during Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro was today honoured by Tamil Nadu government with Chief Minister O Panneerselvam presenting him with Rs 2 crore reward, announced by his

T Mariyappan, Incentive, Rio Paralympics 2016 Image Source : PTIRio Paralympics gold winner Mariyappan gets Rs 2 cr incentive

T Mariyappan, who raised Indian flag high during Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro was today honoured by Tamil Nadu government with Chief Minister O Panneerselvam presenting him with Rs 2 crore reward, announced by his predecessor late Jayalalithaa.      

Panneerselvam presented a cheque for Rs 2 crore to the athlete, who hails from Salem district in the state, an official release said.

Jayalalithaa had announced the reward of Rs 2 crore for Mariyappan for clinching the gold in the high jump event at the Paralympics in September last.

21-year-old Mariyappan, who was merely a five-year-old when his right leg was crushed by a speeding bus while on his way to school, had cleared 1.89 m to become only the third Indian ever to clinch a Paralympic gold.

Panneerselvam also presented a cheque for Rs 2 crore to Tamil Nadu Tennis Association President M A Alagappan as the state government's contribution for the popular tennis tournament ATP Chennai Open, being held here from Jan 2-8.

The state government is the 'Lead Platinum Sponsor' for the tournament, being held here since 1997, an official release here said.

The association had in 2012 made a plea to then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa for financial assistance to the tournament and since then the state government had been sanctioning Rs 2 crore annually.

(With inputs from PTI)