LUCKNOW, July 10 -- There was a time when para shuttler Shashank Kumar used to borrow a shuttlecock for training. At international level, especially at Paralympics, he faced financial hardships. Before the Paris Paralympics, of the 12 qualifying events that he had to participate in, he could only play in two before he ran out of money and he had to leave it there. But that didn't get him down and he kept working hard on his Paralympic mission. His indefatigable spirit paid rich dividends last week when he made a sensational finish, winning two gold and a silver medal at the Uganda Para Badminton International 2025 Tournament at Kampala in Uganda. "It's a big confidence booster for me as I am looking towards the upcoming World Championship in February in Bahrain's capital Manama, and thereafter the 2026 Paralympics. This time, I am not going to miss it," said Shashank on Wednesday on his return from Uganda. In Uganda, Shashank won his first gold medal in mixed doubles while partnering with Ammu Mohan, before winning his second gold in men's doubles and this time partnering with Harish Mythili Srikumar. His silver came in men's singles in wheelchair one category. Suffering from polio at the age of just four, Shashank, who began his professional career in para badminton in 2017, finished fifth in the Asian Para Games at China in 2022 before participating in the World Championship at Japan in the same year. "Every medal in Uganda was like a dream come true and this time I was determined to finish on the podium. Every win boosted my ranking in the world and currently I am within the qualifying standard for the World Championship, but I am not going to sit back and will make sure winning more medals before the February's event in Bahrain," said Shashank, 31, who hails from Barabanki but now lives in Lucknow. Shashank, who had his first silver medal at the 1st National Para Badminton Championship in 2017, didn't look back and won a number of medals, including five gold, 14 silver and 10 bronzes at the national and international events. He is currently ranked three in the world in mixed doubles and 15 in the men's singles. "I had to borrow money from Pramod Bhagat Bhai to go on tour a number of times, and even on this Uganda tour, I had to invest money from my own pocket as I had no sponsorship. Only recently, I got a job in Income Tax in Mumbai and it's a great help as now I am able to manage things a little better," said Shashank, who is the only earning member of his family of three as his brother runs a 'paan' shop with little income. "My mission is to play all the ranking tournaments before the World Championship and get ready for the qualifying of the 2026 Paralympics. Though while working in Mumbai I don't have ample time for my routine training so I keep on travelling to Lucknow quite often," said Shashank, who aims to pair with Delhi's Munna at the World Championship. However, Shashank praised his coach Gaurav Khanna for his success. "Gaurav Sir always stood behind me and I am training at his academy only and I am getting all the support from him," he said. Coach Khanna too admired Shashank's ability to make India proud one day at the Paralympics. "The way he (Shashank) has been progressing, is quite tremendous and I am quite hopeful to see him finishing on the podium at the Paralympics one day," said Khanna. "He trains hard and works on his skills. His recent success in Uganda is great for his future and I am sure that he will do his best at next year's World Championship and in future Paralympics also," said Khanna....