Palesha Goverdhan isn’t done making history

She trains, she studies, she sacrifices, and she smiles through it all. Nepal’s first Paralympic medallist sets her sights on a bigger prize at LA 2028.

Except for when Palesha Goverdhan is sparring or training, she always wears a smile. “What is there not to be happy about?” she says, after finishing her day’s training inside the Nepal Taekwondo Association building in Satdobato, Lalitpur, a place where she has spent much of her young life.