Rubina Francis wins silver in Paris Paralympics: Rubina Francis clinched a bronze medal in the women’s 10m air pistol (SH1) final, bringing India’s medal tally to five.
The Indian shooter had an excellent start, securing third place with 50 points after Stage 1 of the event, which consisted of 5 series. She dropped to fourth place with 134.3 points after 14 shots but then staged a remarkable comeback, climbing back into the top three with 154.4 points after 16 shots.
Rubina briefly held the second spot but ultimately ended up with a bronze medal. Iran’s Sareh Javanmardi won the gold, while Turkey’s Aysel Ozgan took the silver.
The Indian para shooter secured a spot in the final by finishing seventh in the qualification round with a total score of 556/600.
The 25-year-old trailed the top-eight shooters for much of the qualification round but gained momentum towards the end, managing to secure a spot in the medal round.
While Rubina successfully qualified for the final in the women’s 10m air pistol event, India faced a setback in men’s 10m air rifle (SH1) event. Swaroop Unhalkar was unable to advance, finishing 14th with a score of 613.4 points.
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Rubina Francis has rickets, a condition that affects bone development, making her 40 percent handicapped in her legs. Rickets causes pain, weakness, and can lead to bone deformities, impacting her mobility.
In 2018, she delivered an impressive performance at the Asian Para Games in the P2 Women’s 10m Air Pistol (SH1) event. However, her most notable achievement came at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020, where she secured a gold medal for India in the women’s 10m air pistol SH1 P2 category.
India has secured a total of five medals at the Paris Paralympics so far. Before Rubina Francis’s bronze medal win, in women’s hooting, Avni Lekhara claimed gold, while Mona Aggarwal earned a bronze medal. In the Men’s 10m air pistol event, Manish Narwal brought home a silver medal. Preeti Pal won bronze in the women’s 100-meter T-35 category race.