India’s Paralympic contingent continued its impressive showing at the Paris 2024 Paralympics, securing a seventh medal on Sunday. Nishad Kumar brought home the silver in the men’s high jump T47 final, clearing 2.04m with ease before failing at 2.08m. The gold went to Roderick Townsend of the USA. This followed Preethi Pal’s bronze medal win earlier in the women’s 100m-T35 event, where she achieved a personal best of 30.01s, finishing behind China’s Xia Zhou and Qianqian Guo.
While the day saw triumphs, it also held its share of challenges. In Para badminton, Mandeep Kaur and Palak Kohli faced defeats in their respective Women’s Singles SL3 and SL4 quarterfinal matches. However, Manisha Ramadass delivered a strong performance, securing a victory over Japan’s Toyoda Mamiko to reach the Women’s Singles SU5 semifinals.
Para shooting saw mixed results. Avani Lekhara and Sidhartha Babu failed to qualify in the R3 – Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1 qualification, while Sriharsha Devaraddi finished 26th in the R5 – Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH2 category.
Further down the line, Rakshita Raju finished last in Heat 3 of the Para athletics women’s 1500m, while Ravi Rongali secured fifth place in the Men’s Shotput F40 final, achieving a personal best throw of 10.63m.
In other standout performances, Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan secured a spot in the Women’s Singles SH6 semifinals after defeating Poland’s Oliwia Szmigiel. Meanwhile, Nitesh Kumar and Suhas Yathiraj progressed to the finals of the Men’s Singles SL3 and SL4 events, respectively, in Para badminton. Bhavinaben Patel emerged victorious in the Women’s Singles – WS4 – Round of 16 in Para table tennis, securing a semifinal berth. Rakesh Kumar, in Para archery, showed resilience, progressing to the semifinals after overcoming a close contest against Kyle Tremblay in the quarterfinals.
The day concluded with several other notable performances, including Preethi Pal’s bronze in the women’s 200m – T35 final and Rakesh Kumar’s final match in the men’s individual compound open, where he lost to He Zihao of China. The Paris Paralympics continue to showcase the unwavering spirit and determination of athletes from across the globe.
