New Delhi: With 29 medals – its highest tally at any Paralympic Games – India stands at the 18th position as of Sunday (September 8), the closing day of the Summer Paralympic Games in Paris.
Seven of these medals are gold, nine are silver and the rest are bronze. Winning in the games’ archery, athletics, badminton, judo and shooting events, who are India’s 29 Paralympian medallists?
🥇 Gold medallists
1. Avani Lekhara: Hailing from Jaipur, Lekhara successfully defended her gold medal in the women’s 10 metre-air rifle standing SH1 event on Friday (August 30) with a score of 249.7, becoming the first Indian woman to win two gold medals over the course of the Paralympic Games.
At the Tokyo Summer Paralympic Games in 2020, Lekhara became the first Indian woman to win gold at the Paralympics as well as the first Indian woman to win multiple medals at a single Paralympics edition.
At the games’ shooting events, ‘SH1’ athletes are those who are able to hold their gun “without difficulty” and shoot either from a standing or a sitting position. If shooting from the latter position they could use a chair or a wheelchair.
2. Nitesh Kumar: The 29-year-old para badminton player and IIT Mandi electrical engineering graduate won gold in the final match of the men’s singles SL3 category, scoring a 21-14, 18-21 and 23-21 win over Great Britain’s Daniel Bethell on Monday (September 2).
Kumar, a native of Haryana’s Charkhi Dadri, made his Paralympic Games debut this year.
At the games’ badminton events, the ‘SL3’ category is for athletes who compete standing and who have a lower limb impairment and balance problems while walking or running.
3. Sumit Antil: He successfully defended his gold medal from the Tokyo Paralympics in the men’s javelin throw F64 class category on Monday with his 70.59 metre attempt, which also happens to be the new paralympic record.
According to the Olympics’ website, 26-year-old Antil surpassed his Tokyo best of 68.55 metres three separate times on Monday. The ‘F64’ category applies to field athletes with lower limb impairments competing with a prosthesis.
4. Harvinder Singh: Para-archer Singh, 33, beat Pole Lukacz Cizek 6-0 at the men’s individual recurve open final match on Wednesday (September 4) to become India’s fourth gold medallist at the Paris games.
5. Dharambir: Thirty-five-year-old Dharambir from Haryana threw his club 34.92 metres far to clinch gold in the event’s ‘F51’ category on Wednesday, in doing which he also set the Asian record. All athletes in the F51 category compete while seated.
6. Praveen Kumar: Setting another Asian record, Kumar, 21, cleared 2.08 metres in the men’s high jump event for ‘T64’ class athletes – which applies to track athletes with lower limb impairments and using a prosthesis. He was also India’s youngest para-athlete to win a medal at the Games’ Tokyo edition.
7. Navdeep: At 47.32 metres – 2.6 metres ahead of second place – 23-year-old Navdeep won gold in the men’s javelin throw event of the ‘F41’ category on Saturday (September 8). The throw was his personal best. This category comprises athletes of a short stature.
🥈 Silver medallists
8. Manish Narwal: The 22-year-old scored 234.9 in the final of the men’s 10 metre-air pistol shooting SH1 category on August 30 to secure a silver medal. At the 2020 games he became the first male Indian shooter to win gold at the Paralympics with his win in the mixed 50 metres SH1 event.
9. Nishad Kumar: On Sunday (September 1), 24-year-old Kumar came second in the men’s high jump event of the ‘T47’ category.
According to the Olympics website, the T47 category applies to “athletes with a unilateral upper limb impairment resulting in some loss of function at the shoulder, elbow and wrist”.
10. Yogesh Kathuniya: With a 42.22 metre-throw at the games’ men’s ‘F56’ discus throw event, the 27-year-old para-athlete from Haryana won a silver medal. His category is where athletes compete in a wheelchair or a throwing chair.
11. Thulasimathi Murugesan: The 22-year-old top-seeded badminton player won silver at the women’s singles ‘SU5’ event on Monday, having lost 17-21 and 10-21 to China’s Yang Qiu Xia. Athletes in her category have upper-limb impairments.
12. Suhas Yathiraj: Qualifying for the final match in the badminton men’s singles ‘SL4’ category, Yathiraj was bested 9-21 and 13-21 by France’s Lucas Mazur on Monday, earning him a silver medal. His category is for athletes that demonstrate “lower limb impairment and minor balance problems walking or running”.
13. Sharad Kumar: Clearing a height of 1.88 metres, 32-year-old Kumar came second in the men’s high jump event of the ‘T63’ class on Tuesday. The category, as well as Kumar’s category of ‘T42’, applies to track athletes with lower limb impairments.
14. Sarjerao Sachin Khilari: Breaking the Asian record with his 16.32 metre throw, 34-year-old Khilari won silver in the men’s shot put event of the ‘F46’ category on Wednesday. This category is for athletes with arm impairments.
15. Ajeet Singh: Throwing his javelin 65.62 metres far, 31-year-old Singh clinched silver at the men’s javelin throw event of the F46 category on Tuesday.
16. Pranav Soorma: Competing in the same club throw event as gold medallist Dharambir, 29-year-old Soorma came second with 34.59 metre throw.
🥉 Bronze medallists
17. Mona Agarwal: 36-year-old Agarwal won bronze at the same category Lekhara won gold in: the women’s 10 metre-air rifle standing SH1 event, making her part of one of India’s double-podium results at this year’s games.
18, 19. Preethi Pal (×2): Pal, 23, won bronze at two events of the ‘T35’ category: the women’s 100-metre dash as well as the 200-metre one, clocking at 14.21 seconds and 30.01 seconds respectively. She was the first Indian para-athlete to win a track medal at the Paralympics. Her category applies to track athletes with co-ordination impairments.
20. Rubina Francis: The 25-year-old scored 211.1 in the women’s 10 metre air pistol SH1 event on August 30.
21. Manisha Ramadass: Competing in the SU5 women’s badminton singles, 19-year-old Ramadass lost 12-21 and 8-21 to Denmark’s Cathrine Rosengren on Monday, earning her a bronze medal. She shared the podium with silver medallist and fellow Indian Murugesan.
When Ramadass won her medal she was the first Indian woman to win a medal at the Paralympics’ badminton events, the Olympics’ website said.
22. Sheetal Devi and Rakesh Kumar: India’s youngest Paralympian at 17 years old, Devi, who was also the only armless female archer at this year’s games, won bronze at the mixed compound open archery with Kumar upon defeating Italians Eleonora Sarti and Matteo Bonacina 156-155 on Monday. Devi uses her legs to shoot arrows.
23. Nithya Sivan: 19-year-old Sivan won bronze at the ‘SH6’ category women’s singles badminton event on Monday. She was bested 14-21 and 6-21 by Indonesia’s Rina Marlina. Her category applies to “short stature and standing athletes”, according to the Olympics’ website.
24. Mariyappan Thangavelu: Just behind fellow Indian Sharad Kumar at 1.85 metres, he won bronze at the men’s high jump event of the T63 class. Thangavelu has the distinction of being the first Indian para-athlete to win medals at three consecutive Paralympic Games.
25. Sundar Singh Gurjar: At 64.96 metres, 28-year-old Gurjar’s javelin throw earned him bronze at the men’s javelin throw event of the F46 category. He shared the podium with silver medallist Ajeet Singh.
26. Deepthi Jeevanji: Clocking 55.82 seconds in the women’s 400 metre event for ‘T20’ class athletes on Tuesday, Jeevanji, 20, won bronze. She became the first intellectually impaired Indian athlete to win a Paralympic medal.
27. Kapil Parmar: He won India’s first Paralympic judo medal on Thursday upon beating Brazilian Elielton de Oliveira 10-0 in the men’s 60 kg J1 bronze medal match. His class is for athletes affected by complete blindness.
28. Hokato Hotozhe Sema: Hailing from Dimapur in Nagaland, 40-year-old Hotozhe Sema earned a bronze medal at the men’s F57-class shot put event, registering a 14.65-metre throw. This class is for athletes affected in either leg and who play while seated in events.
29. Simran: At the T12 women’s 200 metre dash event on Saturday, 24-year-old Simran crossed the finishing line in 24.75 seconds. Since athletes in her category are visually impaired, Simran ran with her guide Abhay Singh.
