Champion shooter Avani Lekhara has created history at the Paris Paralympics by becoming the first Indian to win gold medals in consecutive editions of the Paralympics. The 22-year-old from Jaipur also became the second Indian to win multiple medals at the same Paralympics after Joginder Singh Sodhi, who won three medals at the 1984 Games. (More Sports News)
Last week, Avani broke her own record. In the women’s 10m air rifle SH-1 category, she shot a score of 249.7 to surpass 249.6 which she recorded in Tokyo Paralympics three 2021. In the process, she became the first woman shooter from the country to win multiple gold medals.
Avani’s journey hasn’t been smooth but reflects resilience. She was injured in a road accident, which left her paralyzed below the waist. But that did not stop her from chasing her dreams.
In February 2012, Avani, then twelve years old, had met with a car accident on their way to Dholpur (a district in Rajasthan) in which the entire family got injured. While the family members recovered slowly, Avani's injuries were chronic.
She broke her L1 level of the spinal cord resulting in the paralysis of her body below the waist. She had to spend more than three months at the SMS Hospital in Jaipur, another three at the Indian Spinal Injury Centre (ISIC) in New Delhi and followed by treatment at various hospitals in Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
Remembering the fateful day and the difficulties faced by their daughter later, Avani’s parents Praveen Lakhera and Shweta Lakhera, both state administration officers in Rajasthan told Outlook: “Despite undergoing treatment and surgery in hospitals in Jaipur and Delhi, doctors were of the view that there is no treatment of traumatic paraplegia, which our daughter was diagnosed with.
"In 2012, for anyone in the family, thinking or even hoping for these laurels was impossible. She was unable to accept that she would be normal again and could dance and participate in sports activities".
"She was deprived of admission to the school and after two years she got admission in KV–3, Jaipur and slowly her life started coming back on track. Slowly she began participating in other activities including dance competitions.
"We took her to Jagatpura shooting range to perform shooting and archery and she decided to begin shooting in April 2015 and subsequently won gold in the state-level championship, later that year," added her parents, who in 2015 had gifted her the biography of renowned shooter Abhinav Bindra which helped bringing back her lost confidence.
In 2021, when Avani Lekhara won the gold medal in Tokyo, her grandfather GR Lakhera, while speaking to Outlook, had called her victory an inspiration for thousands of para-athletes.
As per her family members, once Avani was comfortable shooting in the wheelchair and making adjustments, she went from 50 shots to even 200 shots in a session. After 2015, there was no look back for Avani.
She made her international competition debut in 2017 and rose to fourth in the women's 10m air rifle standing world ranking and also occupied the same position in the 50m 3-position (R8) event.
Avani Lekhara's success, according to her parents, owes to her hard work, determination and devoted coaches -- Suma Shirur and Subhash Rana.
“Her dedication and hard work of her coaches was massive. In Jaipur, she practised at Jagatpura shooting range and eventually in the last few years, she practiced in Delhi and Mumbai under coach Suma Shirur through physical and online sessions. She would practice for 10 hours a day and would never get tired”, added the proud family members.
On Saturday, amidst an arousing welcome at the New Delhi airport, Avani, who was joined by her compatriot and another Paris medallist Mona Agarwal, told the media, “The journey has been good so far and India won many gold medals this year”.
At the Paris Paralympics, India has so far won 27 medals, a record haul for the country. Three years ago, it was 19 medals.
