Avani Lekhara just couldn’t stop smiling. Shock, surprise, delight, relief, and even a hint of disbelief at fickle destiny -- her face soaked in a golden glow revealed all of that. She had just confirmed a gold medal for India at the Paris Paralympics in what was a dramatic 24-shot final in women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1. To double the joy for India, Mona Agarwal captured the bronze to give India a sensational start to the Paralympics campaign.
Avani, who shot into the limelight three years back in Tokyo Paralympics with two medals, was leading for most of the second half of the final but slipped to second position in the penultimate shot with Korean G Lee Yunri snatching the lead from her with a fantastic 10.7 (total 240). Avani had shot 10.1 and was totalling 239.2.
Avani, being a fast shooter, shot another 10.1 and thought the gold had slipped out of her grasp as she waited for Lee to complete her last shot. A 9.8 would have sealed the gold for Lee, but the Korean shockingly shot a 6.8.
Under pressure, and with the gold medal in sight Lee had fumbled dramatically. Avani then released that thousand-watt smile, defending her gold medal with a new Paralympic record of 249.7. She improved on her own record from Tokyo.
Being the defending champion in the event, Avani was carrying the hopes of a nation. She started well and was in second place after the first two series (10 shots). Korean Lee was at top place with a score of 104.2 followed by Avani 1-3.7 and Chinese C Zhong Yixin 103.3. Mona Agarwal was at sixth place (102.7) but she climbed to the top with some exceptional shooting as the final progressed.
A perfect 10.9 in the 11th shot saw Mona jump to third place. There was tough tussle between Avani and Lee before the Indian took the lead from the 13th shot and held it tightly with some fearless shooting. Mona now moved to second position with a 10.7 in the 17th shot as Indian shooters found themselves perched in 1-2.
Mona made further inroads to take the lead after 20 shots. She had a total of 208.1, leading by a decimal point over Avani. Though her momentum dropped as the final progressed towards the finish line, it was enough for her to claim a bronze medal.
Avani, after a roller-coaster ride, sealed the gold medal. She will be taking part in two more events, and is a hot favourite to return with a few more medals.
India's Medal Hopefuls in the Paris Paralympics
India will look to open their medal tally on the second day of the 2024 Paris Paralympics on Friday. There are a couple of medal opportunities in para-athletics with Karam Jyoti and Sakshi Kasana in action in the women's discus throw F55 final, Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal can also open India's medal tally in para-shooting.
Also in para-athletics, Preethi Pal will look to climb the podium in the women's 100m-T35 final. India will also have para-athletes in action across shooting, badminton and cycling.
India's Schedule for August 30th
Here's a look at India's schedule for August 30, Friday:
12 PM: Para badminton - Manasi Joshi loses to Oksana Kozyna in the women's singles SL3 group stage match.
12:30 PM: Para shooting - Avani Lekhara finished 2nd and Mona Agarwal fifth in the women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 qualification.
1:20 PM: Para badminton - Manoj Sarkar lost 19-21, 8-21 to Mongkhon Bunsun in men's singles SL3 group stage match.
1:30 PM: Para athletics - Karam Jyoti and Sakshi Kasana in women's discus throw F55 final (MEDAL EVENT).
Not before 2 PM: Para badminton - Nitesh Kumar vs Yang Jianyuan of China in men's singles SL3 group stage match.
Not before 2:40 PM: Para badminton - Suhas Yathiraj vs Shin Kyung Hwan of South Korea in the men's singles SL4 group stage match.
2:45 PM: Para shooting - Manish Narwal and Rudransh Khandelwal in men's 10m air pistol SH1 qualification.
3:15 PM: Para shooting - Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal in women's 10m air rifle SH1 final (MEDAL EVENT).
Not before 4:40 PM: Para badminton - Palak Kohli vs Lean Ratri Oktila of Indonesia in women's singles SL4 group stage match.
4:24 PM: Para cycling - Arshad Shaik in men's C2 3000m individual pursuit qualification.
4:45 PM: Para athletics - Preethi Pal in women's 100m-T35 final (MEDAL EVENT).
5 PM: Para shooting - Sriharsha Devaraddi in mixed 10m air rifle standing SH2 qualification.
7:30 PM: Para badminton - Thulasimathi Murugesan vs Beatriz Monteiro of Portugal in the women's singles SU5 group stage match.
Not before 8:10 PM: Para badminton - Sirajan Solaimalai vs Chu Man Kai of Hondg Kong in men's singles SH6 group stage match.
Not before 8:50 PM: Para badminton - Nitya Sre Sivan vs Cai Yi Lin of Chinese Taipei in women's singles SH6 group stage match.
Not before 10:50 PM: Para badminton - Krishna Nagar vs Miles Krajewski of the USA in men's singles SH6 group stage match.
Not before 12:10 AM: Para badminton - Suhas Yathiraj-Palak Kohli vs Hikmat Ramdani and Leani Ratri Oktila in the mixed doubles SL3-SU5 group stage match.
Not before 12:10 AM: Para badminton Nitesh Kumar-Thulasimathi Murugesan vs Lucas Mazur-Faustine Noel of France in mixed doubles SL3-SU5 group stage match.
Not before 1:30 AM: Para badminton - Sivarajan Solaimalai-Nithya Sre Sivan vs Natthapong Meechai and Chai Saeyang Chai of Thailand in mixed doubles SH6 group stage match.
Preethi Pal Creates History in Track Events
The 23-year-old Indian para-athlete recorded a personal best timing of 14.21s, finishing behind People’s Republic of China’s Zhou Xia and Qianqian Guo, who clocked 13.58s and 13.74s, respectively.
The T35 class is for runners with coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis.
This was India’s third Paralympic medal at Paris 2024. Earlier in the day, Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal won gold and bronze, respectively, in the 10m air rifle shooting standing in SH1 class.
Preethi qualified for her maiden Paralympics by winning a bronze medal in the women’s 200m T35 event at the World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan, earlier this year.
“Before I came to Paris, I hoped to get a medal as in the worlds - I got the bronze medal, so I thought I could do it at these Paralympics,” Preethi said after her historic run at Stade de France. “Now I hope to get a medal in the 200m.”
Preethi, who missed out on a medal at the Asian Para Games in China last year, said moving her training base to New Delhi proved to be decisive.
“I am (now) training with many strong and experienced para athletes…At the Asian Para Games I was fourth but two years on I got a Paralympics medal.
“The move has improved me so much as a runner, learning about diet and other things.”
Preethi will compete in the women’s 200m T35 class. The final is scheduled on Sunday.
India's Medal Tally
India has secured 31 medals at the Paralympic Games, comprising nine golds, 12 silvers, and 10 bronze medals. In contrast to the Summer Olympics, where India's success was primarily driven by the dominant Indian hockey team in its early years, the Paralympics have witnessed individual athletes stepping up to bring glory to the nation.
Since making its debut in the Paralympic Games in 1960, India has participated in 11 editions, amassing 31 medals in total—nine gold, 12 silver, and 10 bronze. Remarkably, over half of these achievements were earned at Tokyo 2020.
Here is the complete list:
Source: Olympics.com
