Niranjan Mukundan, also known as N. Mukundan, is an Indian para-swimmer. He was born with Spina Bifida but that hasn"t stopped him from achieving his dreams. He has won myriad medals both at national and international level. Presently, he trains with fellow GoSports Foundation scholar and London 2012 paralympian Sharath Gayakwad under Coach John Christopher.
Early Life of Niranjan Mukundan
He was born on 4 September 1994 in a middle-class family in Bangalore in the Karnataka state of India. His father was an independent consultant and mother works as a manager with Ernst and Young. Niranjan is currently pursuing his B.com plus CA from Jain University.
Medical Condition of Niranjan Mukundan
Niranjan was born with a medical condition called Spina bifida and with clubbed feet. He has undergone 10 major surgeries and 6 minor surgeries already. It all started when he was just 6 months old. The doctors advised him to undergo swimming to strengthen his leg muscles. Following the doctor"s advice, his mother made him join Jayanagar Swimming Pool in Bangalore. His coach John Christopher noticed his potential as a swimmer and promised to turn him into an international level swimmer.
Career of Niranjan Mukundan
In his swimming career, Niranjan has bagged innumerable medals. He won the silver medal twice in 50m butterfly at the Paralympic nationals in Mumbai, 2004–2005 and Kolkata, 2005-2006. At the state aquatic championships, Bangalore he won silver medal in 2007 and bronze in 2009 in Water polo. At the national swimming championship in Chennai in 2012, he won three gold medals and one silver medal in swimming and one bronze in Water polo. At the 13th para national swimming championship in Bangalore, he won one gold, a silver and two bronze medals.
Niranjan tasted his first international success at the IDM German Swimming Championship in Berlin. There he grabbed a bronze medal in 200m freestyle. In 2013 he won further international medals at the IWAS world junior games in Puerto Rico. There he grabbed two silvers in 100m freestyle and butterfly along with two bronze medals in 100m backstroke and 50m freestyle. Soon, all these achievements made him a world number 17. In 2014, at the IWAS world junior games in Stoke, Mandeville, U.K. Niranjan bagged a whopping eight medals including three gold, two silver and three bronze.
