Avani Lekhara and Sidhartha Babu Miss Finals at Paris Paralympics
Indian para shooters Avani Lekhara and Sidhartha Babu did not qualify for the finals in the Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1 event at the Paris Paralympics. In the qualification round, Avani secured 11th place with 632.8 points, while Sidhartha held 28th place with 628.3 points. The top eight shooters moved to the final round, but both Indians failed to advance.
Slovakia’s Veronika Vadovicova topped the qualification round with 637.8 points. Spain’s Juan Antonio Saavedra Reinaldo and Ukraine’s Iryna Shchetnik took second and third places with 637.3 and 636.9 points, respectively.
India has secured a total of five medals at the ongoing Paris Paralympics, including one gold, one silver, and three bronze medals. Avani Lekhara won gold in the women’s 10m air rifle final, while Mona Agarwal bagged bronze in the same event. Manish Narwal earned a silver in the men’s P1 10m air pistol SH1 competition. Rubina won bronze in the P2-Women’s 10M Air Pistol SH-1 final, and Preethi Pal secured bronze in the women’s T35 100m race with a personal best of 14.21 seconds.
This year, India has sent its largest Paralympics contingent ever, with 84 athletes competing in 12 sports. India’s participation in the Paris 2024 Paralympics marks a significant increase in both numbers and medal hopes, aiming to surpass previous achievements in Tokyo.
Doubts Revealed
Avani Lekhara -: Avani Lekhara is an Indian para shooter who competes in shooting events. She uses a wheelchair and has won medals in the Paralympics.
Sidhartha Babu -: Sidhartha Babu is another Indian para shooter who competes in shooting events. He also uses a wheelchair.
Paris Paralympics -: The Paris Paralympics is a big sports event for athletes with disabilities, held in Paris, France. Athletes from all over the world compete in various sports.
Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1 -: This is a shooting event where both men and women compete together. ’10m’ means they shoot from 10 meters away, ‘Prone’ means lying down, and ‘SH1’ is a category for shooters who can support the weight of the rifle themselves.
Qualify for the finals -: To qualify for the finals means to perform well enough in the initial rounds to move on to the final round of the competition.
Slovakia -: Slovakia is a country in Europe. Veronika Vadovicova, who led the qualifiers, is from Slovakia.
Veronika Vadovicova -: Veronika Vadovicova is a para shooter from Slovakia who performed very well in the qualifying rounds.
Medals -: Medals are awards given to athletes who perform very well in their events. They can be gold, silver, or bronze.
84 athletes -: India has sent 84 athletes to compete in the Paralympics this year, which is the largest number ever from India.
12 sports -: The Indian athletes are competing in 12 different sports at the Paralympics, like shooting, athletics, and swimming.
