Avani Lekhara wins shooting gold to open India’s Paralympic medal tally

Avani Lekhara created history on Thursday as she clinched a historic gold medal at the women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 in the Paris Paralympics, thus securing successive top podiums at the event. In an exceptional performance, Lekhara surpassed her own Paralympic record, raising the bar with a final score of 249.7; she ended at 249.6 at the previous Paralympics in Tokyo.
The final round was nothing short of dramatic, with tension mounting as Lekhara faced a significant drop in the shoot-out for the gold. Her penultimate shot, a 9.9, temporarily dropped her to second place behind Korea’s Yunri Lee, who seemed poised to claim the top spot.
However, Lekhara’s final shot, a steady 10.5, left the outcome hanging in the balance, dependent on Lee’s performance. In a surprising twist, Lee faltered under pressure, delivering a disappointing 6.8, which allowed Lekhara to clinch the gold by a significant margin of 1.9, sealing her legacy as one of India’s finest Paralympians.
India’s triumph at the event was further sweetened by Mona Agarwal’s remarkable achievement of winning the bronze medal, which contributed to India’s medal tally. Mona ended with a final score of 228.7 and lost to Yunri Lee for a chance to set up an all-Indian shootout for gold.
Mona had been consistent throughout the round, too, and had momentarily been at the top after 20 shots with a score of 208.1. However, a 10.0 in her 22nd shot of the final ended her campaign, with the Indian successfully clinching a bronze.
Avani Lekhara became the first Indian woman to clinch two Paralympic gold medals. At Tokyo Paralympics, she had become the first woman shooter from the country to win medals in shooting. In addition to a gold medal in the 10m air rifle standing SH1, she also won a bronze in the 50m rifle 3 positions.
SH1 category in shooting involves athletes who have movement affected in their arms, lower trunk, and legs or have no limbs.