August 30
Shooter Avani Lekhara won a gold medal in the Paralympic Games. She is the first Indian woman to win a Gold Medal in the Paralympic Games.
Avani, the 19-year old girl secured Gold Medal in women’s 10m Air Rifle SH1 with a world record score of 249.6 in the final.
Also, she is the fourth Indian sportsperson to win a Paralympic gold after swimmer Murlikant Petkar (1972), javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia (2004 and 2016), and high jumper Thangavelu Mariyappan (2016).
China’s Zhang Cuiping took silver, as she did in Rio 2016, with a score of 248.9 while Ukraine’s Iryna Schetnik finished with a total of 227.5 for bronze.
She is a law student from Rajasthan University, who sustained spinal cord injuries in a car accident in 2012.
Earlier in the qualifying round on Monday, Avani started with 103 in the first series of shots and went on tally 102.8, 104.9, 104.8, 102.1, and 104.5 as she finished seventh with 621.7 points.
In 2019, Avani clinched 10m air rifle silver at the Para Shooting World Cup in Osijek, Croatia.
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated Avani Lekhara for winning the Gold Medal in shooting at Paralympics Games in Tokyo.
In a tweet, the Prime Minister said;
“Phenomenal performance @AvaniLekhara! Congratulations on winning a hard-earned and well-deserved Gold, made possible due to your industrious nature and passion towards shooting. This is truly a special moment for Indian sports. Best wishes for your future endeavours.”
