Chennai: Mariyappan Thangavelu was welcomed at Chennai airport upon return to his native state by Mr. Chandrasekar – President & Mr. Kirubakararaja – Vice president. Mariyappan bagged silver in the men’s high jump T42/T63 class after recording a jump of 1.86m at the Tokyo Paralympics.

Born in 1995, Mariyappan Thangavelu represented India in the 2016 Summer Paralympic games held in Rio de Janeiro and won the gold medal. On 25 January 2017, he was conferred with the Padma Shri award and Arjuna Award for his contribution towards sports. He was awarded with Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, the highest sporting honour in the country, in 2020.