Chateauroux (France): Tokyo Games gold medallist shooter Manish Narwal displayed pluck and courage in ample measure before settling for a silver medal in the men's 10m air pistol (SH1) final at the Paralympic Games here on Friday.
The 22-year-old Manish, winner of 50m pistol gold in Tokyo three years ago, looked determined to do an encore in Paris, leapfrogging from No.5 to the top of the heap. But just when the gold looked well within his grasp, Manish came up with a series of poor shots in the '9s', which saw him drop to second place and finally settle for silver with a score of 234.9.
Veteran South Korean marksman, 37-year-old Jo Jeongdu upped his game just when it mattered to clinch gold with a score of 237.4, missing the Paralympic Games record by mere decimals. Manish, who comes from a family of shooters and is the recipient of the highest sporting honour the Khel Ratna, had qualified for the final in fifth place.
Manish had shot a total of 565 to enter the eight-man final.
The other Indian in the event, 17-year-old Rudransh Kahndelwal missed the final, finishing ninth with a total score of 561. In SH1 class, athletes are able to hold their gun without difficulty and shoot from a standing or sitting position in a wheelchair or chair.
Manish's father Dilbag told PTI on Friday that his son desperately wanted to win the 10m air pistol medal in Paris.
"Yes, he did win the 50m pistol gold in Tokyo but his aim was to win a medal in 10m air pistol as well. He topped the qualification in Tokyo but, unfortunately, finished seventh in the finals," said Dilbag.
"He called us a little while back and said he was sorry that he couldn't bring the gold medal. But we told him, it's a massive achievement after the Tokyo disappointment," said Dilbag.
Dilbagh, a former state-level free-style wrestler who runs a machine-manufacturing unit, said Manish started shooting in 2016, while younger son Shiva took up the sport a year later. "My daughter Shikha too is an international shooter, though she is currently out of the national squad," said Dilbagh, a 48kg freestyle grappler during his playing days.
Shedding light on how Manish took up shooting, the senior Narwal said, he was looking for a sport his son could pursue as he had an impairment in his right hand.
"Someone suggested that Manish could take up shooting sport. He was passionate about football but we knew there was no future for him in the game because of his disability," said Dilbagh about his elder son.
Dilbag said initially the two brothers suffered a lot as it was extremely difficult to import pistols and specialised ammunition.
"For a very long time, they didn't even have their own pistols, but now, by God's grace, all three kids have no problem."
Just when things were looking up for the three siblings in the family, tragedy struck when they lost their eldest brother last year in November and Manish, Shiva and Shikha all went into depression.
"My eldest son, Manjeet, died in a road mishap on November 1 last year, after which the three went into depression. He was not a shooter.
"A water tanker hit him from behind and crushed him under the wheels. Shikha suffered the most due to the tragedy and lost her place in the national squad. She has not been able to overcome the loss yet. All three were very much attached to Manjeet."
Manish, nicknamed 'Haryana Roadways bus' by his coaches because he is always ahead of his rivals in competition, quite like the buses in the state, which are driven at breakneck speeds, said, "This medal is the reward of eight years of hard work. I cried after winning this medal.
"I did everything possible to win this medal, changed my technique, tried to remove all the shortcomings in my training and implemented a lot of learnings from Tokyo. I have worked with three coaches between Tokyo and now to get this elusive medal," said Manish.
Preethi wins India's first track medal at Paralympics
Preethi Pal won India's first athletics medal in a Paralympics track event as she clinched a bronze in the women's T35 100m competition with a personal best time of 14.21 seconds at the Paris Games on Friday.
All the athletics medals India has won since the 1984 edition of the Paralympics have come from field events.
The 23-year-old Preethi, a farmer's daughter from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, opened India's athletics medal account on the second day of competitions. Preethi had come to Paris after winning a bronze in the same event at the World Para Athletics Championships in May.
China's Zhou Xia (13.58) and Guo Qianqian (13.74) won the gold and silver respectively.
"More glory for India as Preeti Pal wins a Bronze medal in the 100m T35 event at the #Paralympics2024. Congratulations to her. This success will certainly motivate budding athletes," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
The result was a repeat of the 2024 World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan, as the same Chinese runners Xia and Qianqian had won gold and silver there too. T35 classification is meant for athletes who have coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis.
"This was my first Paralympics and I am still yet to believe that I have won a medal," she said.
“I am feeling proud that I have won India's first track medal in the Paralympics."
Preethi will also compete in the T35 200m event in which she also won a bronze in World Para Athletics Championships. She was born to a farmer's family in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. 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.
She underwent various traditional treatments to strengthen her legs, including wearing calipers for eight years from the age of five.
At 17, Preethi's perspective began to change when she watched the Paralympic Games on social media. But her life-changing moment came when she met Paralympic athlete Fatima Khatoon, who introduced her to para-athletics.
With Fatima's support, Preethi competed in the state championships and national events from 2018 onwards. She qualified for the Asian Para Games last year in China, where she finished fourth in both the 100m and 200m sprints.
She moved to Delhi to train under coach Gajender Singh and fine tuned her running techniques, leading to her winning a bronze medal each in 100m and 200m in World Para Athletics Championships. She also received out of pocket allowance under Target Olympic Podium Scheme of the government and other financial assistance for training and competition.
