India has started its Paris 2024 Paralympic campaign from today. This time 84 para athletes are going to participate from India, who will try to ensure medals for India in 12 different disciplines. In the year 2021, India set a benchmark by winning 19 medals in the Tokyo Paralympics, which included 5 gold medals. This time India’s target will be to take the number of gold to double digits. It is also natural to have this expectation from Indian para athletes because India won 111 medals in the Para Asian Games and India’s performance in the World Para Championships was also very good.
Let us know which para athletes are going to be the biggest medal hopes for India in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Out of the five gold medalists of the last time, 4 players are also participating in this time’s games. The first and biggest name among them is that of javelin thrower Sumit Antil, who is also India’s flag bearer in the Games this time. Apart from these, Manish Narwal, Avni Lekhara, and Krishna Nagar will also come out to defend their gold medal won in Tokyo.
Apart from these defending champions, Bhavaniben Patel, who won the country’s first medal in table tennis, will also be aiming for gold this time. Para shooter Sheetal Devi, who won two gold and one silver in the Asian Games, is also playing the Paralympics this time and the country is also expecting a medal from her. Sheetal Devi is the only international champion in the world who shoots with her feet.
Apart from all these, Yogesh Kathunia, Deepthi Jeevanji, Mariyappan Thangavelu, Suhas Yathiraj, Hokto Seema and Narayan Kongapalli are some of the athletes who will enter the Paralympic Games as the biggest hope for India. Sumit Antil and Bhagyashree Jadhav were India’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony in Paris yesterday, which was held outside the stadium for the first time in the history of the Paralympics.
