Deepthi Jeevanji is her name. The daughter of daily labors, lives in a village named Kallara, around 131 kilometers from Hyderabad. 

She hogged the limelight on Monday in Japan in World Para-Athletics, breaking the record and winning the first gold medal for the country in the women's 400 metres in the T-20 category. 

Deepthi smashed American Breanna Clark’s earlier world record of 55.12 seconds set during last year’s edition of the championships in Paris clocking a world record of 55.07 seconds.

The 21-year-old athlete was picked up by Dronacharya coach Ramesh Nagapuri in 2015. But Deepthi was already mentally retarded as the response in her behavior and approach was ‘abnormally slow’. 

Ramesh speaking from Hyderabad over the phone remembered, "After she started training here at the SAI Hyderabad under my observation, Pullela Gopichand watched her and advised me to put her in Para-Athletics. Then she did not look back.” 

Deepthi, after creating history is now one of the strong contenders to get into the national Para-Athletics women’s team to enter the Paris Olympics.

Her parents while paying gratitude to Ramesh revealed that Deepthi’s life got rejuvenated as they had to face huge obstacles when Deepthi started athletics. Even the relatives and the people in their locality often used to taunt them saying that Deepthi would not be able to marry as she was mentally retarded! 

Now they are waiting for the golden girl’s journey to Paris.