Paris Paralympics: Indian shooter Avani bags gold with Games record

Chateauroux, Aug 30 : Avani Lekhara bagged a gold medal with the Games record while Mona Agarwal took home bronze in the women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 at the Paris Paralympics on Friday.

In the final, Avani bettered her previous record set in the Tokyo Games to finish at the top in the eight-player competition. She finished with a total of 249.7 to achieve the new Paralympic record in the category. Her previous best was 249.6 in the Tokyo Paralympics.

On the other hand, Mona, who was briefly leading the final round of shots, finished third with a total of 228.7 to win a bronze medal in the event and also opened the country's medal count in the Games.

South Korea's Lee Yunri claimed the silver medal with a total of 246.8. She lost the gold on the final shot after shooting 6.8 as Avani successfully defended her gold medal, won in her Paralympic debut in Tokyo.

In the qualification round, Avani finished second with 625.8 while Mona was placed fifth with a score of 623.1. Ukraine's Iryna Shchetnik topped the qualifications with a Paralympic qualification record of 627.5, surpassing Chinese shooter Zhang Cuiping's record set in the Tokyo Games.

SH1 category is for shooters with lower limb impairments like amputations or paraplegia with the ability to hold their gun without difficulty and shoot from a standing or sitting position.

Avani scripted history at Tokyo 2020 when she became the first Indian woman to clinch a pair of medals at a single edition of the Paralympics. She won the 10m air rifle gold and the 50m rifle three-position bronze in the SH1 category in the Tokyo Paralympics.

Her remarkable achievements have been recognised with prestigious awards such as the Padma Shri and Khel Ratna.