Rio Paralympics silver medallist Deepa Malik was Thursday named as the recipient of the New Zealand Prime Minister's Sir Edmund Hillary Fellowship for 2019 in recognition of her "inspiring achievements".
The 48-year-old Deepa, who won the silver medal in shot put F53 event in Rio in 2016, will work to promote sporting, cultural as well people-to-people relationship between India and New Zealand.
Athletes in F53 category can do only seated throws and they have full muscle power on their shoulder, elbow and wrist in the throwing arm.
"We are very pleased to announce that the New Zealand Prime Minister's Sir Edmund Hillary Fellowship for 2019 has been awarded to Indian Paralympic athlete Deepa Malik. The fellowship, awarded by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, aims to strengthen the ties between India and New Zealand," a New Zealand High Commission release said.
"It gives us great pleasure to award this fellowship to someone who exemplifies two values that make a great sportsperson: courage and a can-do attitude. In Deepa, we see an inspiring achiever who can confidently and proudly carry forward our message of inclusivity and the pursuit of excellence," it added.
Congratulating Deepa, High Commissioner Joanna Kempkers said, "When Deepa comes home, she will be a great ambassador for the India-New Zealand relationship. We hope that she will share her experiences in New Zealand far and wide, bringing greater understanding and helping to build the people-to-people links between the two countries."