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Emotional scenes at Barman home as Swapna wins historic Asian Games gold

On Wednesday, Swapna Barman created history, becoming the first Indian to win a gold in heptathlon at Asian Games.

Barman aggregated 6026 points from seven events spread over two days.

While the gold medal made Barman a star overnight, not many know the struggles and hardships she had to overcome before reaching this stage.

Swapna, who hails from Jalpaiguri in West Bengal, was suffering from severe toothache during the two-day heptathlon final and as a result, competed with a tape on her right cheek to lessen pain arising out of teeth infection.

What makes her gold-medal winning performance even more incredible is the fact that she has six toes on both her feet. But due to lack of proper customised shoe, the athlete is forced to use the normal footwear.

Knee and ankle injuries also kept Swapna on the sidelines for nearly a year before she made a comeback in June to secure her second Asian Games participation.

Besides, Swapna's father - a van-puller - suffered a stroke in 2013 and has been bed-ridden since then.

But when Barman won the historic gold, her mother could not control her emotions. Barman's mother was moved to tears as her daughter created history to make India proud.

Her mother's reaction shows what the athlete's achievement means to the family.

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