Rarely does a person’s name mirror their personality so much. However, Haider Ali is one such person who has stayed true to his name. Brave and courageous, the 24-year-old Haider, who suffers from cerebral palsy, made Pakistan proud by winning its first ever medal in the Paralympics 2008 held in Beijing, China. Participating in the long jump he covered 6.44 metres, made a total of 1104 points (a world record in the Games for people with disabilities), and grabbed the silver medal.
Most recently, he competed at the 2010 Asian Para Games where he not only won a long jump gold medal but also created a new Games record in the process. Apart from that, he competed in the metre race and finished with a bronze.
Previously, Ali won a gold medal for Pakistan in the long jump event at the KL’06 FESPIC Games held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in November-December 2006.
Haider never really had athletics in mind when he was growing up. Despite his disability he had a passion for cricket. However, in 2002, spurred on by his friends, he appeared for the inter-college Punjab athletics trials. His first attempt at the long jump almost fetched him the college record. It was a sign of great things to come. He competed regularly in the college events taking part in the 100 and 200 metres sprint, the long jump and the discus throw, winning a Punjab University gold medal in the process.
Despite his herculean effort, he has received little support from the country’s sports ministry. ‘They don’t give due respect to their Olympians,’ he says.
He remains committed to his goal, however, and his only drive is the honour of representing Pakistan.
His family’s support has been a huge factor in him getting to this level. He believes athletics is not treated as a proper sport in the country and would like to see more professionalism in the setup. ‘Only two weeks with an Australian coach turned my performances around.’
Despite all the odds, Haider is marching on. He trains at home, largely due to a lack of a proper facility in his home town of Gujranwala and is confident of repeating his feats at the 2012 London Paralympics.
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