Not settling for just one medal, 19-year-old Avani Lekhara clinched a bronze medal today and became the 1st ever Indian woman to win multiple medals in a single Paralympics edition. Her bronze medal came in the 50m Rifle 3P SH1 competition. For the unversed, SH1 is a category for those Paralympians that compete with lower limb impairments.

After her glorious performance, PM Modi, President Ram Nath Kovind, sports minister Anurag Thakur along with popular celebrities lauded Lekhara on Twitter.

Contents hide
1. Details
2. Avani Lekhara – A 19-year-old Shooting Legend
3. How Did Avani Win Her Second Medal?
4. Netizens Applaud Avani on Her Performance
5. 18-yo-Praveen Kumar Clinches Silver
6. What Happened During the Competition?
7. Tokyo 2020 Paralympics – India’s Best Ever Paralympics Performance

Details

“Life consists not in holding good cards, but in playing those cards you hold well”. Young Paralympian Avani Lekhara’s Twitter bio does something that most bios rarely do – precisely describe who the person is and what they are all about.

Avani Lekhara – A 19-year-old Shooting Legend

Jaipur’s Avani Lekhara was dealt a tough pair of cards when she met with an accident at just 11-years-old. The accident, forced her to navigate through life being paralyzed from the waist down.

But a go-getter to her core, Avani put all her energy and focus on her purpose – shooting. ‘Lo and behold, the fruits of her labour came out sweet and today, the young legendary shooter emerged as the first and the only Indian woman to win multiple medals in a single edition of a Paralympics.

Also Read: Tokyo Paralympics: Bhavina Patel Pulls Off Upset, Becomes 1st TT Player to Secure Medal for India

How Did Avani Win Her Second Medal?

On September 3, the shooter clinched another medal by finishing at the 3rd position at the 50m rifle 3P SH1 competition. Although the young shooter saw herself slipping further down to the 6th position, she made a triumphant comeback by registering a streak and pose a total of 445.9 points.

With the fabulous performance, the 19-year-old registered multiple records – first Indian woman to win multiple medals in a single Paralympics. Further, the second ever Indian to do so after Joginder Singh Bedi claimed 3 medals back at the 1984 Summer Paralympics.

Netizens Applaud Avani on Her Performance

On her inspiring performance, prominent Indian netizens – including PM Modi, President Kovind, sports minister Anurag Thakur – took to Twitter and broke ranks in appreciation.

Earlier this week, Avani scripted history by being the first ever Indian woman Paralympian to win a gold medal and further equaling a world record at the 10m air rifle final.

Also Read: After Neeraj Chopra, Devendra Jhajharia Eying Third Gold Medal at Tokyo Paralympics

18-yo-Praveen Kumar Clinches Silver

Meanwhile, Indian contingent continued on its exemplary performance at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Another young maverick – 18-year-old Praveen Kumar from Uttar Pradesh – won the silver medal at the T64 High Jump event. What made the medal all the more glorious was the fact that this was Praveen’s debut Paralympics performance.

What Happened During the Competition?

Competing against experienced players from across the world, Praveen looked at his best and set an Asia-wide record with a 2.07m jump. His first two attempts saw him starting with 1.83m and 1.97m and he was ranked with Great Britain’s Jonathan Broom-Edwards and Poland’s Maciej Lepiato.

Soon, all three Paralympians shattered the 2.01m mark and then even cleared 2.04m mark. Praveen was looking to go high-and-mighty, but couldn’t cross the 2.10m mark set by Edwards who took away the gold.

On his silver-medal winning performance, he too was lauded on Twitter by prominent politicians, celebrities and Indian masses.

Also Read: Amit Khatri Wins Silver for India in U-20 World Athletics Meet Championship

Tokyo 2020 Paralympics – India’s Best Ever Paralympics Performance

With these 2 medals, India has taken its medal tally to double digits at 12 medals and counting. Following the suit of Olympics 2020, which saw the best medal tally, Paralympics 2020 too has Indian athletes registering some of their best ever performances to have a tally unlike any other Paralympics edition.