Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj (born 2 July 1983) is an Indian

para-badminton Para-badminton is a variant of badminton for athletes with a range of physical disabilities. Badminton World Federation (BWF) is the main governing body for para-badminton starting from June 2011. The sport was governed by Para Badminton World Fed ...

player and the World No. 1 in men's singles. He won the silver medals at the

Tokyo 2020 The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

and Paris 2024 games thus becoming the only Indian para-badminton player to win back to back medals at the Games. Yathiraj is also an IAS officer of the 2007 batch of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

cadre, and has served as

District Magistrate The district magistrate, also known as the district collector or deputy commissioner, is a career civil servant who serves as the executive head of a district's administration in India. The specific name depends on the state or union territo ...

of Gautam Buddha Nagar &

Prayagraj Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

. He won the gold medal at the National Para Badminton Championships in 2018. He is also an

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

who graduated from National Institute of Technology, Surathkal. He is the only IAS officer in India to win a Paralympic medal and an

Arjuna Award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards given for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjun ...

. At the 2016 Asian Para Badminton Championships,

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

, China, he became the first Indian bureaucrat to win a professional International Badminton Championship. He won gold beating Hary Susanto of

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

in the finals when he was serving as

Azamgarh Azamgarh is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Azamgarh division, which consists of Ballia, Mau and Azamgarh districts. Azamgarh is situated on the bank of Tamsa River (Tons). It is located east of the ...

. He came to International attention when he won

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

and became first ever serving Indian bureaucrat to represent and win a medal for India at global level. In December 2016, he became the recipient of Uttar Pradesh's highest civilian honor, the Yash Bharti, which he received on 1 December 2016 from the erstwhile

Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh The chief minister of Uttar Pradesh is the head of the Government of Uttar Pradesh. As per the Constitution of India, the Governor (India), governor is the state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minis ...

Akhilesh Yadav Akhilesh Yadav (; born 1 July 1973) is an Indian politician and national president of the Samajwadi Party who served as the 20th Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. Having assumed the chief minister's office on 15 March 2012 at the age of 38, he ...

. On 3 December, World Disabilities Day, he received award from the

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonom ...

for his performances in para sports. He also holds distinctive record for winning many awards while serving in his official capacity. He has been awarded for his performances by

Governor of Uttar Pradesh The governor of Uttar Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: ''Uttara Pradēśa kē Rājyapāla'') is the constitutional head of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The governor is appointed by the president of India. The post is preceded by the governor of U ...

for his duties related to

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

, by

Revenue In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of product (business), goods and services related to the primary operations of a business. Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some compan ...

Minister and

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

, Board of Revenue for duties regarding revenue administration. Suhas is also supported by GoSports Foundation through the Para Champions Programme. Since his appointment in February 2023, he is serving as the Secretary and Director General of Youth Welfare and Prantiya Rakshak Dal, a department of the

Government of Uttar Pradesh The Government of Uttar Pradesh (International Organization for Standardization, ISO: ''Uttara Pradēśa Sarakāra''; often abbreviated as GoUP) is the subnational government of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with the governor as its appoin ...

Early life and education

Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj was born to Yathiraj L K(late) and Jayashree C S in

Hassan, Karnataka Hassan is a city and district headquarter of Hassan district in Karnataka state of India. Etymology Hassan city gets its name from the Hindu goddess Hassanamba Devi . History Hassan dates from beginnings of the Hoysala Empire in the 11th ce ...

. Sibling : Sharath L Y, His early schooling happened in Dudda near

Hassan district Hassan is one of the districts of Karnataka, 31 districts of Karnataka, India. The district headquarter is Hassan, Karnataka, Hassan. It was part of ''Manjarabad Faujdari'' between 1832-81 (Mysore Commission, Commissioner's Rule of Mysore). In ...

. Since his father was a

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

servant, he had to travel and move with father during his postings at different places. He did most of his

secondary education Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education. Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...

in DVS independent college

Shivamogga Shimoga, officially Shivamogga, is a city and the district headquarters of Shimoga district in the Karnataka state of India. The city lies on the banks of the Tunga River. Being the gateway for the hilly region of the Western Ghats, the city ...

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

. He graduated from

National Institute of Technology The National Institutes of Technology (NITs) are Centrally Funded Technical Institutes, centrally funded technical institutes under the ownership of the Ministry of Education (India), Ministry of Education, Government of India. They are gover ...

, Surathkal, Karnataka in

Computer Science and Engineering Computer science and engineering (CSE) is an academic subject comprising approaches of computer science and computer engineering. There is no clear division in computing between science and engineering, just like in the field of materials science ...

branch in 2004 by scoring First class with Distinction.

Posts held

Personal life

Suhas is married to Ritu Suhas, who got selected as Mrs U.P in Mrs. India 2019 contest a PCS officer currently posted as ADM (Administration) in Ghaziabad. His daughter Saanvi is 13 years old and son Vivaan is 9 years old. His wife has also been awarded for excellent work in voter awareness in

general elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

Achievements

Paralympic Games

''Men's singles SL4''

World Championships

''Men's singles SL4''

Asian Para Games

''Men's singles SL4''

Asian Championships

''Men's singles SL4''

BWF Para Badminton World Circuit (1 title, 4 runners-up)

The BWF Para Badminton World Circuit – Grade 2, Level 1, 2 and 3 tournaments has been sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation from 2022. ''Men's singles SL4''

International tournaments (2011–2021) (4 titles, 5 runners-up)

''Men's singles SL4'' ''Men's doubles SL3–SL4''

Awards and recognition

In sports

* Awarded

(2nd Highest Sport Award after Khel Ratna) (2021) * Yash Bharti, highest civilian honour of UP. (2016) * Best Para Sportsperson, by State government of Uttar Pradesh on World Disability Day on 3 December 2016 in Lucknow * Memento felicitation by president BAI (

Badminton Association of India Badminton Association of India, is the governing body of badminton in India. The association, which was formed in 1934, is registered under the societies act. The body has been hosting annual Indian National Badminton Championships, national-l ...

) during PBL ( Premier Badminton League) in Lucknow on 6 January 2017 * On the occasion of

National Sports Day National Sports Day is a public holiday celebrated in various countries to honour the national sports teams and sports traditions of those countries. On this day people from different age groups take a part in sports like kabaddi, marathon, baske ...

, 2017 (August, 29th, 2017), he was given special award by Hon'ble Chief Minister, UP for winning International Medals for the

Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

and also received cash prize of 10 Lac rupees and appreciation certificate.

In administration

* In 2016, he received Yash Bharti, UP's highest civilian award. * Shortlisted for Prime Minister's award for excellent performance in Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Award * Developed Mobile Application for Kuposhan ka Darpan and Pregnancy ka Darpan, to help undernourished children and pregnant mothers * Developed Mobile Application for helping

differently abled Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be Cognitive disability, cognitive, Developmental disability, d ...

voters Voting is the process of choosing officials or policies by casting a ballot, a document used by people to formally express their preferences. Republics and representative democracies are governments where the population chooses representatives ...

during general elections * Awarded by Revenue minister, Government of UP and Chairman Board of Revenue for excellent work in administration * Awarded by Hon’ble Governor UP for good performance in election related work * During his tenure as the

, he also got shortlisted for Prime Minister's

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award may be d ...

for exemplary work in PM Jan Dhan Yojna on

civil services The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

day, 2016

References

External links

* *
Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj - Asian Para-Badminton Championships 2016 , BWF Para-Badminton
at TournamentSoftware.com
Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj
at the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympics
alternate linkalternate link 2
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yathiraj, Suhas Lalinakere 1983 births Living people People from Hassan Indian Administrative Service officers Indian male badminton players 21st-century Indian sportsmen Indian male para-badminton players Paralympic badminton players for India Badminton players at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Badminton players at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Paralympic medalists in badminton Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Paralympic silver medalists for India Asian Para Games medalists in badminton Asian Para Games gold medalists for India Asian Para Games bronze medalists for India Medalists at the 2018 Asian Para Games Medalists at the 2022 Asian Para Games Recipients of the Arjuna Award