Who is Soman Rana? Ex-Gorkha Rifles Army man becomes India's first-ever CWG gold medallist in shot put F57 event

India's Soman Rana created history as the former Gorkha Rifles Army man became the first Indian to win Commonwealth Games (CWG) gold medal in men's para shot put F57 event. Soman produced a best throw of 13.40m to edge out compatriot Shubham Juyal, who finished close behind with an effort of 13.28m in Glasgow on Saturday.

In the process, India also completed a first double-podium finish in the event at the Commonwealth Games, as the country finished with seven medals - their best ever in para sports in the competition. India finished with seven medals at para sports at CWG 2026 - 3 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze.

Shot put wasn't what Soman started with. An Indian Army havildar, he was once among the country's finest amateur boxers, finishing fifth at the National Championships in 2005. He trained alongside the likes of Vijender Singh (2008 Olympic bronze medallist), K C Kutappa (now a national coach) and Som Bahadur Pun (2006 CWGs silver medallist).

Soman Rana's life changes in 2006

Then, a 22-year-old, Rana life took a different turn when he returned to his unit - the 2nd battalion of 8 Gorkha Rifles. During his duty with the Gorkha Rifles along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, Rana stepped on a landmine and lost his right leg in December 2006.

Life changed completely for Rana. Post recovery from his injury, Rana went to the Army Rehabilitation Centre in Pune. After serving the Indian Army for almost 10 years, Rana was made aware of an Army Paralympic Node, which was founded by Col. Gaurav Dutta. Given a chance to pick up a sport, the 43-year-old Rana chose shot put.

It was no looking back for Rana since then as he found a new lease of life in para athletics. Since then, he has represented India at the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Paralympics and steadily built an impressive resume that includes silver at the 2022 Asian Para Games and bronze at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships.

The Commonwealth Games gold adds another major achievement to the 43-year-old's decorated career. For Rana, the triumph was the culmination of a remarkable journey of resilience and perseverance.

“Its a proud moment for every Indians. Winning gold at such grandest stage feels very great. India winning both gold and silver in the event, makes it even more happy. I want to thank the Indian Army, Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the Government of India for their support,” Rana said.

Next in Rana's target is the Para Asian Games in Japan in September and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. "Hopefully I can compete at the Los Angeles Paralympics next time. I get a lot of motivation from what I’m doing. I wouldn’t be at this level if I wasn’t motivated enough. I’m still very motivated and happy I can still be a sportsperson,” Rana told Sportstar.