India’s campaign at the Tokyo Paralympics is one of the country’s extraordinary achievements. Indian athletes have been on a record-setting spree so far, with the medal tally standing currently in double-digit –a first for India, not just at the Paralympics but also in the Olympics.
India had sent 54 athletes to compete in nine sports, including Archery, Athletics (Track and Field), Badminton, Swimming, Weightlifting, among others. This is the biggest-ever contingent India has sent to any Paralympics.
So far, India has won 15 medals – three gold, seven silver and five bronze medals. Currently, India is placed 34th on the medals tally. The Tokyo Paralympics 2020 will conclude on September 5, when Indian athletes will compete at the remaining events. On Sunday, the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games will be held.
Here’s the list of Indian athletes who won laurels at the ongoing Tokyo Paralympics:
Gold Medal:
1. Avani Lekhara – Gold Medal – Women’s 10m Air Rifle Shooting standing SH1
Shooter Avani Lekhara scripted history as she became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Paralympics after winning the R-2 women’s 10m Air Rifle standing SH1 event.
The 19-year-old from Jaipur, who sustained spinal cord injuries in a car accident in 2012, finished with a world record-equalling total of 249.6, which is also a new Paralympic record.
SH1 category is designated to athletes with lower limb impairment for competition in Rifle events.
2. Sumit Antil – Gold Medal – Men’s Javelin Throw F64
Sumit Antil won the second gold medal for India in the men’s javelin throw F64 event. Antil broke his own world record in the men’s javelin F64 category with a throw of 68.55m to hand India the second gold medal at the Paralympic Games 2020.
In 2019, Sumit had secured a silver in the World Para Athletics Championships. Ahead of the Paralympic Games, Sumit had held the world record with a throw of 62.88m. He recorded 66.95m in his very first throw, and in his second attempt, he threw 68.08m. In his fifth, he threw 68.55m, which eventually secured a gold medal for Sumit.
In the F64 category, athletes are classified based on primary impairments in the lower limbs, including only limb deficiency and leg length discrepancy. All athletes in these classes compete standing without support.
3. Manish Narwal – Gold Medal – Mixed 50m Pistol SH1 shooting
Shooter Manish Narwal clinched India’s third gold at the ongoing Paralympics in the Mixed 50m Pistol SH1 Shooting final. The 19-year-old Manish Narwal won gold in the Mixed 50m Pistol SH1 Shooting final with a new Paralympics record of 218.2.
SH1 category is designated to athletes with upper or lower limb impairment for competition in the pistol events.
4. Pramod Bhagat – Gold Medal – Badminton
Pramod Bhagat won the Men’s Singles SL3 event badminton gold medal match against Great Britain’s Daniell Bethell at the Tokyo Paralympics on Saturday.
33-year-old Bhagat from Bhubaneswar, Odissa, had contracted polio when he was 4 years old, and had picked up the sports after watching his neighbours play.
Silver Medal:
1. Bhavina Patel – Silver medal – Women’s Singles Table Tennis C4
Bhavina Patel won a historic silver medal in the Table Tennis event in the Paralympic Games. She had reached the finals of the Women’s Singles Class 4 Category in the Tokyo Paralympics, however, she lost to Chinese paddler Ying Zhou.
The 34-year-old Patel, diagnosed with polio when she was 12 months old, had defeated world number 3 Miao Zhang of China in the semifinal showdown. C4 category includes people with lower-limb impairments or issues with lower-limb functionality.
2. Nishad Kumar – Silver medal – Men’s High Jump T47
Nishad Kumar clinched a silver medal in the men’s high jump T47 event in the Paralympics with an Asian record effort. The 21-year-old Kumar jumped 2.06m to win the silver and set an Asian record.
T47 class is meant for athletes with a unilateral upper limb impairment resulting in some loss of function at the shoulder, elbow and wrist. Hailing from Una in Himachal Pradesh, Kumar had met with an accident at the age of eight that resulted in the loss of his right hand. He was also infected by Covid-19 earlier this year while training at the SAI Centre in Bengaluru.
3. Devendra Jhajharia – Silver Medal – Men’s Javelin Throw F46
Devendra Jhajharia is one of India’s sporting legends. Two-time Paralympic gold-winning javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia settled for silver in his to win an extraordinary third Paralympic medal. With the silver medal this time, Devendra Jhajharia has become the first Indian to win three medals in the Paralympics.
The 40-year-old Jhajahria had won gold medals in the 2004 and 2016 Games, pulled off a new personal best throw of 64.35m for the silver.
The F46 classification is for athletes with arm deficiency, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement in arms, with athletes competing in a standing position. Jhajahria had lost his left hand after accidentally touching an electric wire while climbing a tree at the age of eight.
4. Yogesh Kathuniya – Silver Medal – Men’s Discus throw F56
Yogesh Kathuniya secured a silver medal in the men’s discus throw F56. The 24-year-old, a B.Com graduate from New Delhi’s Kirorimal College, threw the discus throw at a distance of 44.38m in his sixth and last attempt to clinch the silver.
Kathuniya suffered a paralytic attack at the age of eight, which left him with coordination impairments in his limbs. He had won a bronze medal in the 2019 World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai with the best throw of 42.51m to secure a Tokyo berth.
The F56 classification is for athletes who have full arm and trunk muscle power. Pelvic stability is provided by some to full ability to press the knees together.
5. Mariyappan Thangavelu – Silver Medal – Men’s High Jump T42
Mariyappan Thangavelu, who had won a gold medal in the Rio Paralympics High Jump event, won yet another medal for India in the Tokyo Paralympic games 2020. He won a silver in the men’s high jump T42 event. Mariyappan cleared 1.86m while American gold winner Sam Grewe succeeded in soaring above 1.88m in his third attempt.
The T42 classification is for athletes with a leg deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement in the legs. The athletes compete in a standing position. Mariyappan Thangavelu, who hails from Tamil Nadu, had suffered permanent disability in his right leg after being crushed under a bus when he was only 5.
6. Praveen Kumar – Silver Medal – Men’s High Jump T64
Praveen Kumar won silver in the Men’s High Jump T64 classification with the best jump of 2.07m.
The 18-year-old Praveen Kumar, competing in his debut Paralympics, set a new Asian record with a 2.07m jump. Praveen Kumar, competing in his debut Paralympics, set a new Asian record with a 2.07m jump. This was also Kumar’s personal best performance, and he is also the youngest medal winner in the Indian contingent.
In the T64 category, the athletes are classified based on primary impairments in the lower limbs and include only limb deficiency and leg length discrepancy. All athletes in these classes compete standing without support.
7. Singhraj Adhana – Silver Medal – Mixed 50m Pistol SH1 shooting
Singhraj Adhana secured a silver medal in the Mixed 50m Pistor SH1 shooting event. He stood second with a score of 216.7, while fellow Indian Manish Narwal won the historic gold medal, securing two medals for the country in the same event.
SH1 category is designated to athletes with upper or lower limb impairment for competition in the pistol events.
Bronze Medal:
1. Avani Lekhara – Bronze Medal – Women’s 50m Rifle three positions SH1
Avani Lekhara won her second medal at the Tokyo Paralympics after she clinched her second medal with a bronze in women’s 50m rifle three positions SH1 classification.
Lekhara finished with 445.9 points while China’s Zhang Cuiping won her third consecutive Paralympics gold medal at this event with a personal best of 457.9.
SH1 category is designated to athletes with lower limb impairment for competition in Rifle events.
2. Sharad Kumar – Bronze Medal – Men’s High Jump T42
Sharad Kumar won the bronze in the men’s high jump T42 event by clearing 1.83m. Kumar is a two-time Asian Para Games gold-medallist.
Kumar, who hails from Patna, Bihar, suffered paralysis in his left leg as a two-year-old after being administered a spurious polio vaccine. Kumar trained in Ukraine for over two years before the Paralympics under foreign coach Nikitin Yevhen after the Modi government stepped in. The government also assisted him in getting back to India from Ukraine during the Covid-19 restrictions.
The T42 classification is for athletes with a leg deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement in the legs.
3. Singhraj Adhana – Bronze Medal – Men’s 10m Air Pistol shooting SH1
Singhraj Adana won his first Paralympic medal after finishing third in the Men’s 10m Air pistol shooting SH1 event. He also won the Paralympics silver medal in the Mixed 50m Pistor SH1 shooting event.
The 39-year-old, who is affected by polio, made his Paralympics debut in Tokyo. He shot a total of 216.8 to finish the event in third place after qualifying for the eight-man final as the sixth-best shooter. The shooter from Haryana’s Bahadurgarh took to the sport only four years ago. Earlier, he had served as the chairman of the Sainik School in Faridabad.
4. Sundar Singh Gurjar – Bronze Medal – Men’s Javelin Throw F46
The 25-year-old Sundar Singh Gurjar finished third with a best effort of 64.01m in men’s javelin throw F46 to win a Bronze medal.
Gurjar, who lost his left hand in 2015 after a metal sheet fell on him at his friend’s house, was third with a best effort of 64.01m in men’s javelin throw F46. The Jaipur-based Gurjar had won gold in the 2017 and 2019 World Para Athletics Championships.
The F46 classification is for athletes with arm deficiency, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement in arms, with athletes competing in a standing position.
5. Harvinder Singh – Bronze Medal – Archery
Harvinder Singh won India’s first-ever archery medal in the Paralympics after beating Kim Min Su of Korea for the men’s individual recurve bronze in the Tokyo Paralympics 2020.
Singh, who is ranked world number 23, won a tight contest against South Korean archer Kim Min Su in a thrilling shoot-off for the individual bronze in the recurve men’s open section.
India’s performance at the Tokyo Paralympics surpassed the previous records achieved at the Rio Paralympic games, in which India had won 4 medals – 2 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze.
6. Manoj Kumar – Bronze Medal – Badminton
One the day Pramod Bhagat won the gold medal at the singles Badminton event, another Indian Manoj Kumar won the bronze medal in the same event. He defeated Japan’s Daisuke Fujihara to clinch bronze in straight sets 22-20 21-13 on September 4. He had lost the semi-final to Great Britain’s Daniel Bethell in the badminton SL3 category, but bounced back to win third place. Manoj was struck by polio during his teenage years and had begun to play badminton at the age of five.
He had started to compete in para-badminton events in 2011, and had won gold medal in the SL3 singles at the 2016 Asian Championships in Beijing. He was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2018, and was named Para Sportsman of the Year at the Sportstar Aces Awards in 2019.
Note: The Tokyo Paralympics are not yet over and the report will be updated with more medal winners when the events are completed.
