India's Dharambir broke the Asian record to clinch the gold medal in the Paralympics 2024 while compatriot Pranav Soorma clinched the silver as Indian club throwers dominated the men's F51 event in the marquee event happening in Paris. After four fouled attempts, the world championships bronze medallist from Sonepat, Dharambir hurled the club to a distance of 34.92m in his fifth attempt to claim the top spot.
Soorma, who sustained a spinal cord injury at 16 when a cement sheet fell on his head, launched a throw of 34.59 meters on his first attempt. Despite this impressive performance, the 29-year-old from Faridabad was unable to surpass Dharambir, resulting in a one-two finish for India.
Dharambir faced a life-altering accident when a misjudged dive into a canal left him paralyzed from the waist down. Para-sports gave him a new direction in life when he was introduced to it by fellow para-athlete Amit Kumar Saroha.
Within two years, Dharambir qualified for the 2016 Rio Paralympics, marking the beginning of a successful career. He has since earned multiple medals for India, including a silver at the 2022 Asian Para Games.
The third Indian competitor, Amit Kumar Saroha, a trailblazing para-athlete and the 2017 world championship silver medalist, ended in last place with a best throw of 23.96 meters.
The F51 club throw event is for athletes who have movement affected to a high degree in the trunk, legs and hands. All the competitors compete while seated and rely on their shoulders and arm to generate power.
India's Avani Lekhara clinched the first medal for India in the ongoing Paralympics by winning the gold medal in the women's 10-meter air rifle standing SH1 category.
India's medals in Paralympics 2024
India have created history in the Paris Paralympics 2024 by clinching 24 medals so far including five gold, nine silver and ten bronze medals. Earlier, India had won 19 medals in 2020 Paralympic Games which was the most before Paris.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
'He really backed us saying...': Yashasvi Jaiswal unveils Gautam Gambhir's coaching philosophy
'My performance has not matched my expectations so far': Shubman Gill acknowledges Test performance gap ahead of Duleep Trophy 2024
