Who Is Mona Agarwal? Shooter Who Clinched Bronze Alongside Avani Lekhara's Gold In Paris

When Mona Agarwal was just nine months old, she contacted polio that would leave her on wheelchair for her entire life. Born in Sikar, Rajasthan, she was also ridiculed for being the third daughter in the family. (Full Paralympics Coverage | More Sports News)

On Friday, the 37-year-old mother of two clinched bronze at the Paris Paralympics. Mona came third in the women's 10m air rifle (SH1) shooting competition where her teammate and Tokyo Paralympics champion Avani Lekhara won gold.

Early life was not easy for Mona but her determination and resolve made her into the star that the country is proud of today. Here is a short profile of Mona Agarwal, the Paris Paralympics bronze medalist.

Who Is Mona Agarwal?

Mona contacted polio when she was just nine-months-old. Being the third child in the family was already not being considered great. Mona suffered taunts all through her childhood. Things were tough, but Mona was tougher.

She pursued studies and, at 23, left home to pursue a career in HR and marketing.

Till 2016, Mona had no idea that something called para sports even existed. Once she got to know about it, she started focusing on sports. Mona tried her hands on several sports and even did well in them before shifting to shooting in 2021.

Within three years, Mona made huge strides from being a newbie in the sport to landing on the podium of Paralympics. Signs of this were visible when she took up to rifle shooting.

In her very first international world cup, Mona would bag a bronze in the mixed team event. In her fourth, she would win a gold and secure Paralympics quota. She would win another world cup gold medal and solidify her place as a medal favourite in her event.

In the final on Friday, Mona notched up 228.7 to settle for the bronze. She has two more events left to etch her name in history.