Paralympics in Paris: Avani reaches the final in the women's 50 m rifle 3P SH1

Chateauroux, September 3 (IANS): India's Avani Lekhara advanced to the final of the Women's 50m Rifle SH1 after finishing seventh in the qualifying round here at the Chateauroux Shooting Range.

Lekhara competed in the 16-woman qualifying round and held her nerve throughout the three challenging rounds (kneeling, prone and standing), achieving a total score of 1159, including 59 10s. Her average score was 9.658.

Avani had previously won bronze in the same discipline at the Paralympics in Tokyo.

Another Indian who participated in this competition, Mona Agarwal, missed out on the finals, finishing 13th with a total score of 1147 and an average of 9.558, including 38 10s.

Earlier, Avani improved her previous Olympic record, set at the Tokyo Games, to win the gold medal in the women's 10m air rifle SH1 event.

The SH1 category is intended for shooters with lower limb disabilities such as amputations or paraplegia who can hold their weapon without difficulty and shoot while standing or sitting.

Avani made history at Tokyo 2020 when she became the first Indian woman to win two medals at a single edition of the Paralympics. At the Tokyo Paralympics, she won gold in the 10m air rifle shooting and bronze in the 50m three positions shooting in the SH1 category.