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Paris Paralympics 2024: Avani Lekhara wins the gold medal in Women's Para Shooting event
India has opened its medal tally at the Paris Paralympics with a gold in the para shooting event. Avani Lekhara repeated her Tokyo Paralympics heroics in Paris by winning the gold medal in the Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 final. India had Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal representing the nation in the event, with both para shooters ensuring a medal finish at the Paris Paralympics. While Lekhara clinched the gold, the 36-year-old Mona Agarwal won the bronze medal in the 10m Air Rifle shooting event.
Avani Lekhara opens India's medal tally at Paris Paralympics with a gold medal
Gold medallist at the Tokyo Paralympics, Lekhara announced her presence in the final event early on as she claimed second position after stage 1. Lekhara scored 10.3, 10.3, 10.3, 10.0, and 10.9 in her first five shots before hitting the bull’s eye on her sixth shot. The para shooter collected 103.7 points with her first 10 shots to climb to second place at the turn of the first stage. Mona Agarwal, on the other hand, was in sixth place at this point, with a score of 102.7 after 10 shots.
🇮🇳🥇 UNSTOPPABLE! The defending champion Avani Lekhara clinches gold at the Paris Paralympics 2024, proving she's still on top!
— The Bharat Army (@thebharatarmy) August 30, 2024
📷 Pics belong to the respective owners • #AvaniLekhara #Shooting #ParaShooting #Paris2024 #Paralympics #TeamIndia #BharatArmy #COTI🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/advcNuWvYR
Lekhara kicked off the second stage with shots of 10.3 and 10.5, claiming the top spot after the first two shots. The Indian duo of Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal then managed to hover near the top spots consistently, with Lekhara rarely fumbling her shots. After the completion of 13 shots, Lekhara continued her stay at the top with a total of 156. For a brief moment, Lekhara lost her spot at the top as Mona Agarwal edged past her with a total of 208.1 after 20 shots.
The final round saw Korea’s Lee Yunri challenging Lekhara for the gold medal. Lekhara shot a 9.9 on her final shot, her first below 10 shot in the event. However, Korea’s Yunri fumbled significantly, shooting a shocking 6.8. Yunri’s error in the final shot secured the gold medal for Avani Lekhara at the Paris Paralympics. Eventually, Mona Agarwal finished the women’s 10m air rifle para shooting event by winning the bronze medal for India.
