Indian judoka Kapil Parma secured a bronze medal at the Paris Paralympics, defeating Brazil’s Elielton de Oliveira in the men’s -60kg J1 contest on Thursday. Parma executed a decisive Ippon in just 33 seconds, sealing his victory and adding another medal to India’s tally.
Earlier in the day, Parma suffered a 0-10 defeat in the semi-finals against Iran’s Banitaba Khorram Abadi. However, he bounced back with a dominant performance in the bronze medal match. The 25-year-old from Shivor, a small village in Madhya Pradesh, reached the final four by overpowering Venezuela’s Marcos Dennis Blanco with a commanding 10-0 win.
In the women’s category, Kokila’s campaign ended after she lost her preliminary round match in the J2 -48kg category, falling 0-10 to Ukraine’s Yuliia Ivanytska.
With Kapil’s win, India’s medal count at the Paris Paralympics has reached 25, including five golds, nine silvers, and 11 bronze medals. This tally has already surpassed the country’s previous best of 19 medals at the Tokyo Paralympics three years ago. India currently holds the 14th position in the overall medal standings.
In para shooting, India’s Sidhartha Babu and Mona Agarwal faced disappointment in the mixed 50m rifle prone SH1 qualification. Sidhartha finished 22nd with a score of 615.8 points, while Mona placed 30th with 610.5 points. Despite some strong individual series, both athletes struggled to find the consistency needed to advance to the next round. Sidhartha’s best series came in the fourth round, where he scored 104.6 points, while Mona’s highest was 104.5 points in the opening series. Neither was able to maintain their momentum and secure a spot in the final.
(ani)