India’s impressive streak of double podium finishes continued at the Paris Paralympics, with para-athletes Dharambir and Pranav Soorma securing gold and silver medals, respectively, in the men’s club throw F51 final. This latest success has propelled India’s total medal count to 24, comprising five gold, nine silver, and ten bronze medals. The Indian team is now just one medal shy of reaching the 25-medal target set by Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) President Devendra Jhajharia.
Dharambir’s exceptional performance included a record-breaking throw of 34.92 meters, setting a new Asian record and earning him the gold medal. His result matched India’s gold tally from the Tokyo Paralympics three years ago. Pranav Soorma, who threw 34.59 meters, narrowly missed out on gold but secured silver. The podium result was a reversal of last year’s Para Asian Games, where Pranav had won gold and Dharambir had taken silver.
Amit Kumar Saroha, the third Indian competitor in the event, did not manage to reach the podium, with his best throw being 23.96 meters. Dharambir’s path to victory was particularly dramatic, as he initially struggled but broke the Asian record with his fifth throw. He also made a significant second attempt of 31.59 meters.
In addition to this success, Serbia’s Zeljko Dimitrijevic, a strong competitor with a history of winning medals, claimed the bronze with a throw of 34.18 meters.
On Tuesday, India enjoyed more podium finishes with Ajeet Singh and Sundar Singh Gurjar winning silver and bronze in the men’s javelin throw F46, and Mariyappan Thangavelu and Sharad Kumar taking bronze and silver in the men’s high jump T6 final.
Earlier in the week, para-archer Harvinder Singh made history by securing India’s first-ever gold medal in para-archery at the Paralympics. Additionally, para-shooter Avani Lekhra earned the nation’s first gold at the Paris Games with a stellar performance in the women’s 10m air rifle final, while para-shuttler Nitesh Kumar won gold in the men’s singles SL3 category. Javelin thrower Sumit Antil also contributed to India’s gold tally with a record-breaking throw of 70.59 meters in the javelin throw F64 class final.