Reigning Paralympic champion Avani Lekhara continued her winning streak by claiming gold in the women’s 10m air rifle final at the Paris Paralympics on Friday. In a remarkable start for India, shooter Mona Agarwal also captured a bronze medal in the same event.

From the outset of the final, both Avani and Mona positioned themselves among the top three contenders. Avani ultimately secured the gold with a personal best score of 249.7 points, demonstrating her dominance throughout the event.

South Korea’s Yunri Lee took the silver medal with a score of 246.8, while India’s Mona Agarwal completed the podium, earning bronze with a total of 228.7 points.

Earlier in the day, during the qualification round, Mona finished in fifth place with a score of 623.1, while Avani secured the second spot with a score of 625.8. Ukrainian shooter Iryna Shchetnik, the holder of the qualification world record, set a new Paralympic qualification record with a score of 627.5, surpassing the previous mark of 626.0 set by China’s Zhang Cuiping at the Tokyo Games.

As the Paris Paralympics progress, India’s athletes remain focused, with more events on the horizon. This year, India has sent its largest-ever Paralympic contingent, consisting of 84 athletes competing across 12 sports. The expanded team reflects the growth of India’s para-sports ecosystem and raises expectations for surpassing the country’s previous achievements at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, where India won a record 19 medals, including five golds, eight silvers, and six bronzes.

(ANI)