India’s Paralympic medal collection in track-and-field events continued to grow on Tuesday in Paris as Deepthi Jeevanji, the reigning world champion sprinter, secured a bronze medal in the women’s 400m (T20) competition. In her first appearance at the Games, the 20-year-old athlete clocked a time of 55.82 seconds, earning a spot on the podium. Jeevanji’s achievement, however, was the only major highlight of the day for India, which saw a relatively quiet performance compared to the previous day’s exhilarating seven podium finishes, including two gold medals.
Yuliia Shuliar (55.16 seconds) of Ukraine and world record holder Aysel Onder (55.23 seconds) of Turkey claimed the top two positions in the 400m (T20) race. With Jeevanji’s bronze, India’s overall medal tally climbed to 16, including three gold medals. Notably, the track-and-field contingent has contributed six medals to this total so far.
Jeevanji, born to farm laborers in Kalleda Village, Warangal district, Telangana, was identified as having an intellectual impairment by a teacher during a school athletics event. During her childhood, Jeevanji and her parents faced ridicule from fellow villagers due to her disability. Despite the challenges, Jeevanji’s achievements have transformed the perception of her village, which now celebrates her successes. She clinched a gold medal at the Asian Para Games last year and went on to break the world record at the Para World Championships in May, securing another gold. Jeevanji’s journey also received support from renowned national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand, who stepped in after she started training under her initial coach, Nagpuri Ramesh. The T20 category in which Jeevanji competes is specifically designed for athletes with intellectual impairment.
Shooter Avani Lekhara, aiming for a second medal at the Games, narrowly missed out on the podium in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 final, finishing in fifth place. The 22-year-old, who has been paralyzed from the waist down since a car accident at age 11, scored a total of 420.6 across the kneeling, prone, and standing stages in a highly competitive field of eight world-class athletes. Despite not securing a medal, Avani has much to celebrate, having become the first Indian woman to win consecutive Paralympic gold medals with her victory in the 10m air rifle event last week.
Germany’s Natascha Hiltrop took home the gold with a score of 456.5, Slovakia’s Veronika Vadovicova claimed silver with 456.1, and China’s Zhang secured bronze with 446.0. The SH1 classification is for athletes with lower-limb impairments competing in rifle shooting. These shooters are able to hold their guns without difficulty and can compete from a standing or seated position (in a wheelchair or chair).
In the women’s shot put (F34) event, Bhagyashri Jadhav finished fifth in her second Games appearance. Jadhav managed a throw of 7.28m, falling short of a podium finish. China’s Lijuan Zou claimed the gold with a season-best throw of 9.14m, while Poland’s Lucyna Kornobys took silver with a distance of 8.33m. The 39-year-old Indian athlete, from Nanded district in Maharashtra, is a testament to resilience. After an accident in 2006 left her unable to use her legs, Jadhav battled depression but, with the support of friends and family, rebuilt her life as a para-athlete.
Pooja Jatyan, the World Para Championship silver medalist, advanced to the quarterfinals of the recurve women’s open archery competition with a straight-sets victory over Yagmur Sengul of Turkey. However, the 27-year-old’s momentum faltered in the quarterfinals, where she was defeated by Wu Chunyan of China, a bronze medalist from the Tokyo Paralympics. Pooja had a strong start, leading 4-0 at one point, but the match slipped away in a heartbreaking fashion. Wu, a four-time Paralympic medalist and 2016 Rio Games team gold winner, struggled early, shooting two arrows into the 7-point red ring for a total of 23 points in the opening set. However, Pooja appeared to succumb to the pressure, allowing Wu to mount a comeback in the third set, which completely shifted the dynamics of the match.
