The men’s javelin F41 final at the Paris Paralympics ended in controversy when Iranian athlete Sadegh Beit Sayah, who initially won gold, was disqualified for displaying a controversial flag. His “improper conduct” led to India’s Navdeep Singh’s silver medal being upgraded to gold, marking India’s seventh gold at the Paris Para Games.
Though Navdeep was thrilled with his upgraded gold, he was deeply moved when he saw Sayah break down after learning his victory had been voided due to the flag gesture. Unaware of the exact reason for the disqualification at the time, Navdeep became emotional seeing his opponent in tears and decided to console him with a hug.
Navdeep shared, “I was shocked when the red card was shown to the Iranian athlete. He was crying, and I became emotional too. I went to him and hugged him to comfort him. I still didn’t fully understand what had happened and the reason behind such a big decision.”