Not satisfied, could’ve done better: Avani Lekhara after becoming 1st Indian woman with 2 Paralympic medals

The
19-year-old,
who
had
won
the
10m
air
rifle
standing
SH1
gold,
added
a
50m
rifle
3
position
SH1
bronze
to
her
haul,
making
her
the
first
Indian
woman
with
two
Paralympic
medals
and
second
overall
from
the
country
to
claim
multiple
medals
in
the
same
edition
of
the
Games.

Paralympics:
Avani
Lekhara
clinches
bronze,
becomes
first
Indian
woman
to
win
two
medals

“I
was
not
satisfied
with
the
gold
only
(laughs),
when
I
won
the
gold,
I
wanted
to
fire
that
last
shot
better…so
this
bronze
is
definitely
not
satisfying,”
Lekhara
said
in
a
virtual
press
conference
facilitated
by
broadcasters
Eurosport
and
the
Paralympic
Committee
of
India.

“…that’s
what
finals
do
to
you,
you
become
nervous.
“I
am
keeping
all
the
celebrations
aside
and
focusing
on
the
next
match,
so
that
is
my
goal,
to
give
my
100
per
cent
in
the
next
event
also,”
she
said
referring
to
the
mixed
50m
rifle
prone
event
on
Sunday
(September
5).

Lekhara
reiterated
her
admiration
for
Olympic
gold-medallist
Abhinav
Bindra
and
that
she
always
wanted
to
become
like
him.
On
Friday,
she
in
fact
went
one
better
on
him
with
her
second
medal.

“…when
I
read
Abhinav
Bindra
Sir’s
autobiography,
it
really
inspired
me,
because
he
gave
his
100
per
cent
to
what
he
did
and
he
won
India’s
first
individual
gold
medal.
“I
always
wanted
to
become
like
him
(Bindra)
and
always
wanted
to
make
my
country
proud,
so
that
is
what
inspired
me
a
lot,”
she
said.

“I
am
very
happy
that
I
was
able
to
get
another
medal
for
the
country
and
it
is
just
I
still
can’t
believe
it.
Lekhara,
competing
in
her
debut
Games,
qualified
second
for
Friday’s
event
with
a
score
of
1176,
including
51
inner
10s.
In
the
fiercely
contested
finals,
she
totalled
445.9
to
finish
ahead
of
Ukraine’s
Iryna
Shchetnik,
who
let
slip
her
grip
on
the
medal
spot
with
a
poor
third
shot
of
9.9
in
the
elimination.

“…for
me
it
was
to
give
(my)
best
in
standing.
And
I
just
thought
everybody
is
feeling
the
same,
so
I
just
concentrated
on
myself,
without
thinking
about
others,”
she
elaborated
when
asked
about
her
mindset.

Athletes
in
SH1
Rifle
have
an
impairment
in
their
legs,
for
example,
amputations
or
paraplegia.
Some
athletes
compete
in
a
seated
position,
while
others
compete
in
a
standing
position.

The
Jaipur-based
shooter
sustained
spinal
cord
injuries
in
a
car
accident
in
2012
rendering
her
immobile.

“I
had
never
won
a
medal
in
sitting,
this
is
my
first
international
(medal),
so
I
was
more
nervous.
But
I
just
had
my
focus
on
my
shots.
So
(in
the)
the
last
match
I
was
focusing
on
one
shot
at
a
time
and
it
just
happened,”
she
said.

Lekhara
also
thanked
her
coaches
especially
former
Olympian
shooter
Suma
Shirur,
for
the
assistance
she
gave.

“We
have
a
very
wonderful
team,
my
coaches,
JP
Nautiyal
Sir,
Subhash
Rana
Sir,
Suma
(Shirur)
ma’am,
my
support
staff,
all
the
team
members
and
the
other
athletes.
“We
have
a
very
good
environment,
very
supportive,
so
that
helps.
If
I
had
any
problem,
Suma
ma’am
kept
me
motivated
and
she
helped
me
a
lot.
It
is
like
a
team
effort,”
she
signed
off.