The 27-year-old Yogesh Kathuniya had claimed silver medal in Tokyo 2020, and the Indian para athlete ended up with the same result at Paris Paralympic Games 2024 too. Catch the play-by-play updates from the men's discus throw F56 final at Stade de France
The men's discus throw F56 final at the Paris Paralympics starts at 1:35pm IST. The Indian has the highest personal best in the five-member field - a 48.34m throw that is the current world record to boot. Can he upgrade his silver from Tokyo to gold in Paris? We shall find out soon.
Ahead of the Paralympics, Yogesh spoke with Outlook and said that after his silver medal showing in Tokyo as well as the World Para Athletics Championships, nothing but a gold will satisfy him in Paris. "To be honest with you, I was not happy with the silver (at World Para Championships). I am just praying and hoping that God listens to me and I do not bring silver, but a gold medal back home," he told Tejas Rane. You can read the full interview HERE.
The final gets underway at Stade de France. Four para athletes are competing for three medals, as the fifth entrant - Duric Nebojsa of Serbia- did not start. Yogesh to throw third among the four men.
As this a seated-throw event, para athletes will throw all their six attempts in one go. The highest-distance throw of each of the athletes will be considered for the final standings.
Slovakia's Dusan Laczko is the first to throw, and he finishes his set of six throws with a best attempt of 41.20m. Brazil's Claudiney Batista, the reigning Paralympic champion, is next in action.
Brazil's Claudiney Batista comes up with a series of consistent throws, with a peak of a 46.86m effort that puts him firmly as the favourite for gold. Yogesh is coming up next. Can he surpass the reigning champion?
Yogesh has come up with throws of 42.22m, 41.50m, 41.55m and 40.33m in his first four attempts. He moves to second with that effort. Two more throws remaining.
Yogesh is unable to surpass his initial throw of 42.22m in his last two attempts. His fifth and sixth throws read 40.89m and 39.68m, so his best effort stays at 42.22m. With that, the Indian is now assured a medal as he is in second place with only one more competitor to follow.
Greece's Konstantinos Tzounis is the fourth and final para athlete to compete in this men's discus throw F56 final. He has a best effort of 39.90m after four throws, which is well below the top three. If he doesn't surpass Yogesh's mark of 42.22m, the Indian will bag his second straight Paralympics silver.
And there we have it. Konstantinos Tzounis finishes with a best throw of 41.32m to overtake Slovakia's Dusan Laczko in third place. Yogesh Kathuniya, thus bags his second consecutive Paralympics silver medal. Though the Indian did not have much rhythm towards the end, he ends with a season best of 42.22m and back-to-back podiums at the grandest stage possible.
Yogesh did not get the gold medal he so desired, but the 27-year-old Indian could not have lost it to a worthier opponent. Brazil's Claudiney Batista has not only defended his title successfully but also completed a hat-trick of gold medals in the Paralympics discus throw F56 event. Greece's Konstantinos Tzounis takes home the bronze medal with a best throw of 41.32m.