Rubina Francis and Manish Narwal triumphed the 10m P6 air pistol mixed team event to secure India’s 3rd gold medal at the preceeding World Shooting Para Sport World Cup in Chateauroux, France.
Narwal and Francis, who summed a world record qualifying score of 565 to step into the final at the top position, trounced Chinese pair of Yang Chao and Min Li 17-11 in the title battle.
The Indian pair totalled 274.3.
Tokyo Paralympics gold medallist Narwal scored 138.7 in the final six shots. He shot invariable scores of 10s and 9s, however Francis also matched her desired partner with 9s, a few 8s and 10.
In the R2 – women’s 10m air rifle standing finals, Lekhara, 20, from Rajasthan, shot a final score of 250.6 to surpass her own world record of 249.6 and take the gold before Poland’s Emilia Babska (247.6) and Anna Normann of Sweden (225.6).
“This event is very important for me as it is the first event after Tokyo. It will help me understand the progress that I’ve made on various aspects that I have been working on since then,” Lekhara notified the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI).
“It is also my first international event with my new equipment and this will help me analyse my game further and know further adjustments that need to be made! Lekhara, the two-time Tokyo 2020 medallist, said her “target for the year is to consistently analyse my game and improve the little bits.”
“To be a consistent shooter is my aim and hopefully win medals along the way too.”
India has been represented by 13 para shooters at this edition opening World Cup in Chateauroux, France.
