Avani Lekhara

Started: She began shooting in 2015 at age 14 at Jagatpura Sports Complex in Jaipur, India. (sportstar.thehindu.com, 19 May 2023; Athlete, 20 Aug 2022; Arnav Jr. YouTube channel, 08 Mar 2017; indusind.com, 24 Feb 2017) Reason: Her father encouraged her to take up the sport. She was also inspired by Indian shooter Abhinav Bindra's book. "The sport happened to me quite by chance. I was in class nine, and it was our summer vacation. I tried out a number of sports, like archery and swimming. The [Jagatpura] shooting range is close to where I live in Jaipur, so it was the easiest option to pick. The first time I went to the range, I got 10-20 shots in the black circle. The coach there then suggested I try the sport full time. As I progressed from one tier of competition to the next, I started loving the sport. Shooting made me feel confident and happy." (sportstar.thehindu.com, 19 May 2023; paralympic.org, 30 Aug 2021; thebridge.in, 26 Nov 2019; indusind.com, 01 Jan 2018, 24 Feb 2017) Ambition: To win medals at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (Athlete, 20 Aug 2022) Milestones: She became the first female athlete representing India to win a gold medal in any sport at the Paralympic Games by claiming the women's SH1 10m air rifle standing title at the 2020 Games in Tokyo. It was also India's first medal in shooting at the Paralympic Games. (SportsDeskOnline, 23 Aug 2022; paralympic.org, 22 Jul 2022) Awards: In 2022 she was presented with the Changemaker of the Year Award by BBC News India. (paralympic.org, 22 Jul 2022; Instagram profile, 29 Mar 2022) In 2022 she received the Padma Shri Award in India. (Instagram profile, 21 Mar 2022) She was named Female Para Athlete of the Year at the 2022 Sportstar Aces Awards in India. (sportstar.thehindu.com, 19 Mar 2022) She was named Best Female Debut at the 2021 Paralympic Awards. (Paralympic Games Twitter profile, 16 Dec 2021) In 2021 she received the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in India. (President of India Twitter profile, 13 Nov 2021) She was India's flag bearer at the closing ceremony of the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. (amarujala.com, 05 Sep 2021; hindustantimes.com, 04 Sep 2021) In 2019 she was named Most Promising Paralympic Athlete by the GoSports Foundation in India. (GoSports Foundation Twitter profile, 14 Dec 2019) Additional Info: EARLY DAYS She returned to school in 2014 following a two-year break from her studies as a result of her accident. Securing victory one year later in a school competition against non-Para shooters allowed her to regain some confidence and inspired her to pursue the sport. "I made new friends, opened up, and got a lot of confidence. When I started shooting a year later [in 2015], life started looking up again. I used to think a lot about these things in the initial days. Shooting was hard. Being a wheelchair user and going out to shoot, I was low on confidence. But that school event was a game changer. It was then that my interest in shooting deepened, and I started taking it seriously." (outlookindia.com, 04 Dec 2021; forbesindia.com, 25 Nov 2021; femina.in, 17 Nov 2021) OCCUPATION She has worked as an assistant conservator of forest [ACF] officer at the Rajasthan Forest Service in India. (timesofindia.indiatimes.com, 25 Oct 2023; Athlete, 20 Aug 2022)