Para-athletes Preethi, Nishad win silver and bronze; shuttlers Suhas, Manisha assure medals

Paris/Chateauroux, Sep 1 (PTI) Para-athletes Nishad Kumar and Preethi Pal fetched a silver and bronze for India respectively while shuttler Suhas Yathiraj positioned himself for glory by reaching the summit clash for a second consecutive time at the Paris Paralympics here on Sunday.

Another shuttler, Manisha Ramadass also assured India of a medal but star shooter Avani Lekhara missed out on repeating her medal-winning feat in her pet event.

India ended the Day 4 of competitions at 27th spot in the rankings with seven medals (1 gold, 2 silver, 4 bronze).

Preethi created history as she became the first Indian woman track and field athlete to win two medals at the Paralympics while Nishad Kumar clinched his second successive silver at the showpiece in the men’s high jump T47 category.

The 23-year-old Preethi, a farmer’s daughter from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, bagged a bronze in the 200m T35 category with a personal best time of 30.01 seconds. She also won a bronze in the 100m T35 category on Friday.

She faced significant physical challenges when she was born as her lower body was plastered for six days after birth. Weak legs and an irregular leg posture made her prone to various diseases.

Preethi also became only the second Indian woman to win two medals — both bronze — in a single Paralympics after shooter Avani Lekhara who won a gold and a bronze in Tokyo three years ago.

T35 classification is meant for athletes who have coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis.

Later in the day, the 24-year-old Nishad, who hails from Una in Himachal Pradesh, won India’s third medal from para-athletics and seventh overall for the country in Paris Paralympics with a season’s best effort of 2.04m.

He lost his right hand in a grass-cutting machine when he was six-year-old.

Nishad, who had also won a silver in Tokyo Paralympics three years ago with a jump of 2.06m, had a tough fight with world record holder and defending champion Townsend Roderick of the USA, who clinched the gold after clearing 2.12m.

STRONG SHOW BY SHUTTLERS

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Tokyo Games silver medallist Suhas is set to become the first Indian shuttler to win back-to-back medals at the Paralympics after outplaying compatriot Sukant Kadam in straight games to reach the men’s singles SL4 final.

The 41-year-old Suhas, a 2007 batch IAS officer, beat Sukant 21-17, 21-12 to make another final at the global showpiece.

Later, Nitesh Kumar also guaranteed a medal for himself in SL3 with a 21-16 21-12 victory over Japan’s Daisuke Fujihara in the semifinal.

Before Suhas sizzled, it was Manisha who set up an all-Indian women’s singles SU5 semifinal with compatriot Thulasimathi Murugesan, assuring the country of at least a silver.

The 19-year-old Manisha, who was born with Erb’s palsy which affected her right arm, had no trouble in dispatching Japan’s Mamiko Toyoda 21-13 21-16 in the quarterfinals. The second seeded Indian left-hander needed 30 minutes to down her unseeded rival.

Erb’s palsy is a nerve disorder in the shoulder and arm that results in weakness or loss of muscle function.

In the last four, Manisha will meet top seed Thulasimathi, who had defeated Portugal’s Beatriz Monteiro in group A on Saturday.

In the SU5 category, the players have impairment of the upper limbs. The impairment could be on the playing or non-playing hand.

However, Mandeep Kaur and Palak Kohli were eliminated in the quarterfinals.

NO SUCCESS IN SHOOTING RANGE

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After the high of four medals in two days, there was disappointment in store for India in the shooting range with Lekhara failing to qualify for the final following a 11th-place finish in the mixed 10m air rifle prone (SH1) qualification in which Sidhartha Babu ended 28th.

In the mixed 10m air rifle prone (SH2) qualification, Sriharsha Devaraddi Ramakrishna ended in 26th place with a total of 630.2.

In the Paralympics mixed event, both men and women compete on the line against each other.

Coming off her historic gold medal in the 10m air rifle standing SH1 event, Lekhara ended the competition with a total of 632.8.

Lekhara’s sequence of scores read 105.7,

106.0, 104.1, 106.0, 104.8, 106.2, while Sidhartha had scores of 104.6, 103.8, 105.7, 104.9, 103.6, 105.7.

In SH1, athletes are able to hold their gun without difficulty and shoot from a standing or sitting position (in a wheelchair or chair).

Sidhartha aggregated 628.3 across six series.

Athletes classified in SH2 category are unable to hold their rifle independently, so they use a stand, but can aim by themselves and control the weapon when they shoot. Certain athletes may have an assistant to reload their gun.

Only the top eight from qualification progress to the final.

RAKESH SHINES

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World No 1 archer Rakesh Kumar overcame a blip to defeat Ken Swagumilang of Indonesia in the shoot-off and enter his successive Paralympics quarterfinals in the compound men open category.

Rakesh held his slender one-point lead and needed a 9-point to seal the issue in five ends. But he slipped with an 8-pointer red-ring, leaving both the archers locked at 144-144 after regulation five ends comprising 15 arrows.

In the shoot-off, the 39-year-old veteran held his nerve to shoot a perfect 10, while Ken managed an 8.