India’s medal hunt at the 2024 Paris Paralympics began with a bang on Day 2, with a combination of exciting victories and historic achievements.
Shooting events saw Avani Lekhara making history once again. She secured her second gold medal at the Para Games by topping the Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 event. This remarkable achievement makes her the first Indian woman to win two gold medals at the Paralympics. Adding to India’s medal tally in shooting, Mona Agarwal claimed bronze in the same event.
Preethi Pal etched her name in the history books by ending India’s wait for a medal in a track event at the Para Games. Her bronze in the Women’s 100m T35 race was a momentous occasion for the Indian contingent.
Manish Narwal continued India’s strong performance in shooting by winning silver in the Men’s P1 Men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 event.
While India celebrated its medal wins, there were also some notable performances in other disciplines:
Badminton:
* Manasi Joshi (Women’s Singles SL3) and Manoj Sarkar (Men’s Singles SL3) faced tough losses in their respective group matches.
* Nitesh Kumar (Men’s Singles SL3) and Suhas Yathiraj (Men’s Singles SL4) secured wins in their group stage matches.
* Palak Kohli (Women’s Singles SL4) and Thulasimathi Murugesan (Women’s Singles SU5) also emerged victorious in their group play matches.
* Sivarajan Solaimalai (Men’s Singles SH6) and Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan (Women’s Singles SH6) fought hard but ultimately lost their group matches.
* Krishna Nagar (Men’s Singles SH6) faced a tough loss.
* The mixed doubles pair of Nitesh Kumar/Thulasimathi Murugesan and Suhas Yathiraj/Palak Kohli faced defeats in their group matches.
* The mixed doubles pair of Sivarajan Solaimalai/Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan secured a win in their group match.
Para Shooting:
* Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal qualified for the Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 final.
* Manish Narwal and Rudransh Khandelwal qualified for the Men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 final.
* Sriharsha Devaraddi Ramakrishna qualified for the Mixed 10m Air Rifle Standing SH2 qualification.
Para Athletics:
* Sakshi Kasana and Karam Jyoti participated in the Women’s Discus Throw F55 Final.
* Manu participated in the Men’s Shot Put F37 Final.
Para Table Tennis:
* Bhavinaben Patel/Sonalben Patel faced a loss in the Women’s Doubles 10 Quarterfinals.
Para Rowing:
* Anita and Narayana Konganapalle qualified for the Repechage in the PR3 Mixed Double Sculls Heats.
Para Archery:
* Sarita (Women’s Individual Compound Open) and Rakesh Kumar (Men’s Individual Compound Open) won their 1/16 Elimination matches.
* Shyam Sundar Swami (Men’s Individual Compound Open) lost his 1/16 Elimination match.
Para Track Cycling:
* Arshad Shaik participated in the Men’s C2 3000m Individual Pursuit Qualifying.
