NEW DELHI: India's representation at the upcoming Paris 2024 Paralympics, taking place from August 28 to September 8, has reached new heights with a record-breaking contingent of 84 athletes. This impressive delegation surpasses the previous milestone set at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, where India was represented by 54 athletes, including 14 women.
The Paris-bound Indian team boasts a strong female presence, with 32 women set to compete across an expanded range of 12 sports.
In addition to the disciplines featured in previous Paralympics, India will make its debut in para-cycling, para-rowing, and blind judo, further diversifying the country's Paralympic portfolio.
In para-cycling, Arshad Shaik will compete in the men's C2 events, while Jyoti Gaderiya will participate in the women's C2 category.
India is gearing up for a strong performance in various para-sports events, including judo, para-rowing, shooting, javelin throw, table tennis, and archery, with high hopes of repeating or surpassing their success from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, where they won 19 medals.
Kapil Parmar will compete in the men's 60kg J1 event in blind judo, while Kokila will take part in the women's 48kg J2 category. Anita and K. Narayana are representing India in para-rowing, specifically in the PR3 mixed doubles sculls event.
India had its best-ever performance at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, bringing home a total of 19 medals, comprised of five gold, eight silver, and six bronze.
Avani Lekhara, who made history at Tokyo 2020 by becoming the first Indian woman to win a Paralympic gold medal in the women's R2 10m air rifle standing SH1 event and tying the world record, will be back to compete.
Sumit Antil, the men's F64 javelin thrower who clinched gold at Tokyo 2020 and holds the world record with a throw of 73.29m at the Asian Para Games in Hangzhou last year, will also be part of the Indian contingent. The two-time world champion will be looking to defend his title in Paris.
In table tennis, Bhavina Patel, who made history by winning India’s first-ever Paralympic medal in the sport, is set to compete in the women's singles event and will also team up with Sonalben Patel for the women's doubles.
Harvinder Singh, the first Indian to win an archery medal at the Paralympics in Tokyo, will participate in the men's individual recurve open and mixed team recurve open in the ST category.
The Indian contingent is set and prepared to shine in these upcoming competitions, building on their historic achievements and aiming for continued success.
Para Archery (6 Athletes)1. Harvinder Singh: Men's Individual Recurve Open, Mixed Team Recurve Open (Category - ST)
2. Rakesh Kumar: Men's Individual Compound Open, Mixed Team Compound Open (Category - W2)
3. Shyam Sundar Swami: Men's Individual Compound Open, Mixed Team Compound Open (Category - ST)
4. Pooja: Women's Individual Recurve Open, Mixed Team Recurve Open (Category - ST)
5. Sarita: Women's Individual Compound Open, Mixed Team Compound Open (Category - W2)
6. Sheetal Devi: Women's Individual Compound Open, Mixed Team Compound Open (Category - ST)
Para Athletics (38 Athletes)1. Deepthi Jeevanji: Women's 400m - T20
2. Sumit Antil: Men's Javelin Throw - F64
3. Sandeep: Men's Javelin Throw - F64
4. Ajeet Singh: Men's Javelin Throw - F46
5. Sundar Singh Gurjar: Men's Javelin Throw - F46
6. Rinku: Men's Javelin Throw - F46
7. Navdeep: Men's Javelin Throw - F41
8. Yogesh Kathuniya: Men's Discus Throw - F56
9. Dharambir: Men's Club Throw - F51
10. Pranav Soorma: Men's Club Throw - F51
11. Amit Kumar: Men's Club Throw - F51
12. Nishad Kumar: Men's High Jump - T47
13. Ram Pal: Men's High Jump - T47
14. Mariyappan Thangavelu: Men's High Jump - T63
15. Shailesh Kumar: Men's High Jump - T63
16. Sharad Kumar: Men's High Jump - T63
17. Sachin Sarjerao Khilari: Men's Shot Put - F46
18. Mohd. Yasser: Men's Shot Put - F46
19. Rohit Kumar: Men's Shot Put - F46
20. Preethi Pal: Women's 100m - T35, Women's 200m - T35
21. Bhagyashri Madhavrao Jadhav: Women's Shot Put - F34
22. Manu: Men's Shot Put - F37
23. Parveen Kumar: Men's Javelin Throw - F57
24. Ravi Rongali: Men's Shot Put - F40
25. Sandip Sanjay Gurjar: Men's Javelin Throw - F64
26. Arvind: Men's Shot Put - F35
27. Dipesh Kumar: Men's Javelin Throw - F54
28. Praveen Kumar: Men's High Jump - T64
29. Dilip Mahadu Gavit: Men's 400m - T47
30. Soman Rana: Men's Shot Put - F57
31. Hokato Hotozhe Sema: Men's Shot Put - F57
32. Sakshi Kasana: Women's Discus Throw - F55
33. Karamjyoti: Women's Discus Throw - F55
34. Rakshitha Raju: Women's 1500m - T11
35. Amisha Rawat: Women's Shot Put - F46
36. Bhavanaben Ajabaji Chaudhary: Women's Javelin Throw - F46
37. Simran: Women's 100m - T12, Women's 200m - T12
38. Kanchan Lakhani: Women's Discus Throw - F53
Para Badminton (13 Athletes)1. Manoj Sarkar: Men's Singles SL3
2. Nitesh Kumar: Men's Singles SL3, Mixed Doubles SL3-SU5
3. Krishna Nagar: Men's Singles SH6
4. Sivarajan Solaimalai: Men's Singles SH6, Mixed Doubles SH6
5. Suhas Yathiraj: Men's Singles SL4, Mixed Doubles SL3-SU5
6. Sukant Kadam: Men's Singles SL4
7. Tarun: Men's Singles SL4
8. Manasi Joshi: Women's Singles SL3
9. Mandeep Kaur: Women's Singles SL3
10. Palak Kohli: Women's Singles SL4, Mixed Doubles SL3-SU5
11. Manisha Ramadass: Women's Singles SU5
12. Thulasimathi Murugesan: Women's Singles SU5, Mixed Doubles SL3-SU5
13. Nithya Sre Sivan: Women's Singles SH6, Mixed Doubles SH6
Para Canoe (3 Athletes)1. Prachi Yadav: Women's Va'a Single 200m - VL2
2. Yash Kumar: Men's Kayak Single 200m - KL1
3. Pooja Ojha: Women's Kayak Single 200m - KL1
Para Cycling (2 Athletes)1. Arshad Shaik: Multiple events including Men's C2 Ind. Time Trial and Men's C1-3 Road Race
2. Jyoti Gaderiya: Multiple events including Women's C1-3 Ind. Time Trial and Women's C1-3 Road Race
Blind Judo (2 Athletes)1. Kapil Parmar: Men's -60kg J1
2. Kokila: Women's -48kg J2
Para Powerlifting (4 Athletes)1. Paramjeet Kumar: Men's up to 49kg
2. Ashok: Men's up to 63kg
3. Sakina Khatun: Women's up to 45kg
4. Kasthuri Rajamani: Women's up to 67kg
Para Rowing (2 Athletes)1. Anita: PR3 Mixed Double Sculls - PR3Mix2x
2. Narayan Konganapalle: PR3 Mixed Double Sculls - PR3Mix2x
Para Shooting (10 Athletes)1. Amir Ahmad Bhat: P3 - Mixed 25m Pistol SH1
2. Avani Lekhara: Multiple events including Women's 10m Air Rifle and Women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions
3. Mona Agarwal: Multiple events including Women's 10m Air Rifle and Women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions
4. Nihal Singh: P3 - Mixed 25m Pistol SH1, P4 - Mixed 50m Pistol SH1
5. Manish Narwal: P1 - Men's 10m Air Pistol SH1
6. Rudransh Khandelwal: Multiple events including Men's 10m Air Pistol and Mixed 50m Pistol
7. Sidhartha Babu: Multiple events including Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone and Mixed 50m Rifle Prone
8. Sriharsha Devaraddi Ramakrishna: Multiple events including Mixed 10m Air Rifle Standard and Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone
9. Swaroop Mahavir Unhalkar: Men's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1
10. Rubina Francis: Women's 10m Air Pistol SH1
Para Swimming (1 Athlete)1. Suyash Narayan Jadhav: Men's 50m Butterfly - S7
Para Table Tennis (2 Athletes)1. Sonalben Patel: Women's Singles WS3, Women's Doubles WD10
2. Bhavinaben Patel: Women's Singles WS4, Women's Doubles WD10
Para Taekwondo (1 Athlete)1. Aruna: Women's K44-47kg
Each athlete is competing in their respective categories, showcasing a range of talents across various para sports.