19-year-old shooter Avani Lekhara, who won gold and bronze medals at the Tokyo Paralympics, led the Indian contingent by carrying the tri-colour during the Closing Ceremony of the Games.
The Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games took place between August 24 and September 5 and it featured 539 medal events across 22 sports. A total of 54 para-athletes from India across nine sports disciplines were featured in the Paralympic Games. The Closing Ceremony saw a total of 11 members of the Indian contingent in attendance. The concepts underlying the Closing Ceremony were “Harmonious Cacophony” and “Moving Forward”. The idea was to convey that Tokyo is “A City Where Differences Shine”.
The Closing Ceremony began with the story of a young boy who after witnessing the Paralympic Games began to feel the Paralympics effect.After the performances came to an end, fireworks went off and the whole Japan National Stadium lit up.
On Friday, Avani had clinched a bronze medal in the Women’s 50m air rifle 3 positions SH1 event. This was Avani’s second medal in the ongoing Paralympics as she had won gold earlier this week. The Indian contingent finished their campaign at the Tokyo Paralympic Games 2020 at an all-time high by securing a total of 19 medals which includes 5 gold, 8 silver, and 6 bronze medals.