Indian Para-Cyclist Arshad Shaik and Team Shine at Paris Paralympics
Indian para-cyclist Arshad Shaik finished 11th in the men’s C2 individual time trial event at the Paris Paralympics. He clocked 25:20:11 and was the last athlete to cross the finish line. France’s Alexandre Leaute won the gold medal, while Belgium’s Ewoud Vromant and Australia’s Darren Hicks took second and third place, respectively.
In the women’s C1-3 individual time trial, India’s Jyoti Gaderiya finished 16th with a time of 30:00:16. Germany’s Maike Hausberger won gold, followed by Great Britain’s Frances Brown and Sweden’s Anna Beck.
India has made history in Paris by surpassing its highest medal tally from the Tokyo Paralympics, winning 21 medals so far. On Monday and Tuesday, the Indian team won 13 medals, bringing the total to 20, including three gold, seven silver, and ten bronze medals. In Tokyo, India had won 19 medals, including five gold, eight silver, and six bronze.
Highlights include Mariyappan’s bronze and Sharad Kumar’s silver in the men’s high jump T6 final, and Ajeet’s silver in javelin with a personal best throw of 65.62m. Sundar also won bronze with a season-best throw of 64.96m. Cuba’s Guillermo won gold with a throw of 66.14m.
This year, India sent its largest Paralympics contingent ever, with 84 athletes across 12 sports, marking a significant increase in both participation and medal hopes.
Doubts Revealed
Para-Cyclist -: A para-cyclist is a cyclist who has a physical disability. They compete in special events called Paralympics.
Paris Paralympics -: The Paris Paralympics is a big sports event for athletes with disabilities, held in Paris, France.
C2 individual time trial -: This is a cycling race where athletes with similar types of disabilities compete against the clock to see who is the fastest.
C1-3 event -: This is a category in para-cycling for women with different levels of physical disabilities.
Medal tally -: A medal tally is the total number of medals won by a country in a sports event.
Tokyo -: Tokyo is the capital city of Japan, where the previous Paralympics were held.
Mariyappan -: Mariyappan Thangavelu is an Indian Paralympic high jumper who won a bronze medal.
Sharad Kumar -: Sharad Kumar is an Indian Paralympic high jumper who won a silver medal.
Ajeet -: Ajeet Singh is an Indian Paralympic javelin thrower who won a silver medal.
Contingent -: A contingent is a group of people representing a country in an event. India sent 84 athletes to the Paris Paralympics.
