Chateauroux: Avani Lekhara’s chances of grabbing a second medal at the Paris Paralympics 2024 went up in smoke after she finished fifth in the final of women’s 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 competition on Tuesday. Despite putting up a strong fight, the 22-year-old Lekhara shot a total of 420.6 across the three stages of kneeling, prone and standing in a world-class eight-woman field.
Earlier in the day, Avani entered the final of the competition after finishing the qualification in seventh place. Avani shot a total of 1159 in the qualification. Lekhara, who is paralysed waist-down owing to a car accident she suffered as an 11-year-old, led the final briefly but slipped to sixth at the end of the prone stage.
The Indian ace was doing well in the standing stage, her strong suit, but then an unexpected 8.3 did not help her cause. Meanwhile, Lekhara won India’s first gold at the Paris Games when she successfully defended her women’s 10m air rifle shooting standing SH1 title.
The SH1 class is designated for athletes with lower-limb impairment for competition in rifle shooting events. Here shooters are able hold their gun without difficulty and shoot from a standing or sitting position (in a wheelchair or chair).
