Odisha Farmer’s Daughter Kalpana Jena Bags Silver At Special Olympics World Summer Games

Cuttack: Kalpana Jena made Odisha proud by winning a silver medal for the country in the 2 km time trial cycling event of the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2023 in Berlin.

Kalpana, the daughter of agriculture farm labourer Gadadhar Jena, clocked 5:42.42 to finish second behind fellow-Indian and gold-medallist Shivani who finished in 5:22.41.

The girl from Athagarh in Cuttack district honed her cycling skills under Jharkhand’s Satbir Singh Sahota, a multiple National champion. After being selected to represent India for the Special Olympics World Summer Games, Kalpana practised under district coach Bibekananda Mohanty.

India’s medal haul in the Games crossed the 50-mark on Wednesday, with cyclists accounting for 6 – 3 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze.