Lohardaga: Five years of training in Lucknow have brought Sanjana Kumari to an important moment in her badminton career - the opportunity to represent India at the Asian Para Games in Japan. Back home in Jharkhand’s Lohardaga district, her father Ratan Kumar takes pride in her selection, but also has a concern - he wants financial support for his daughter which will help her hone her talent even more.
Sanjana left for Japan on Tuesday, October 13 to compete in the women’s singles SL3 category at the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games, scheduled from October 18 to 24 in Japan’s Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya.
A resident of Shantinagar in Dhodha Toli, Lohardaga, Sanjana is ranked 13th in the world. For the past five years, she has been training at a badminton centre in Lucknow under coach Gaurav Khanna, working towards stronger performances on the international circuit.
She has already competed in several international tournaments and won medals. Her selection for the Asian Para Games gives her another opportunity to build on those performances, while bringing recognition to her home district and Jharkhand.
For her father, however, the achievement also brings along an important question about the support available to players who reach this level. Ratan Kumar said his daughter had not received assistance from either the Union government or the Jharkhand government so far, and that a lack of resources had at times made pursuing her sporting goals difficult.
Selection for a competition such as the Asian Para Games, he said, reflects an athlete’s hard work, ability and commitment. Players need financial assistance alongside encouragement so they can concentrate on training and competition without being held back by shortages of resources.
He also called for employment opportunities for para athletes, stressing the need for support that extends beyond their participation in tournaments. As Sanjana prepares to take the court in Japan, her family hopes for a strong performance and for her achievements to bring the assistance her father believes she deserves.