Nagoya: Indian para sprinter Simran Sharma clinched her second gold medal of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games, winning the women’s 100m T12 final with a Games-record time of 12.02 seconds on Wednesday, improving her own mark set in the heats.
Simran, supported by the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), bettered her previous Games record of 12.13 seconds to seal the gold medal. She had won silver in the same event at the 2022 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou with a timing of 12.68 seconds, improving her time by 0.66 seconds and upgrading her medal to gold.
Earlier, Simran set a new Games record with 24.80 seconds to win gold in women’s 200m T12 category on Tuesday. Simran, a Paris Paralympic 2024 bronze medallist in the T12 category and a world champion in the 100m, improved from silver in Hangzhou 2022 (26.12 seconds) to gold in 2026, improving her time by 1.32 seconds. In the same event, debutante Tejalben Damor, a visually impaired T12 para-athlete from Gujarat, also delivered a commendable performance, securing third place with a time of 25.23 seconds and achieving a personal best (PB).
India added to its medal tally in para athletics with podium finishes across sprinting and javelin throw events on Day 6 of the competition.
Pranav Desai won bronze in the men’s 100m T64 with a timing of 11.96 seconds. The Thane-based athlete had finished fourth in the event at the 2022 edition in Hangzhou with a time of 11.91 seconds, improving his finishing position by one place.
India also secured a one-two finish in the men’s 100m T47, with Dilip Gavit Mahadu winning gold in 10.69 seconds and Mohammed Basil Morssinganakathi taking silver in 10.72 seconds, setting a new Games record. The duo replicated their one-two finish from the Commonwealth Games 2026.
In the men’s javelin throw F55, Sukhchain claimed bronze with a personal best of 29.94 metres. He produced his best effort on his third attempt, improving on his opening throw of 27.35m. China’s Feifei Zhou won gold with a world-record throw of 37.63m, while Iran’s Zafar Zaker took silver with a personal best of 36.00m. Sukhchain had also won bronze in the event at the 2022 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou with a throw of 30.36m.
Manjeet Vyas secured silver in the men’s javelin throw F12/13 with a personal best of 61.03m, recording his best effort on his second attempt.
India also claimed silver and bronze in the men’s javelin throw F53. Pradeep Kumar won silver with a personal best of 27.45m on his final attempt, while Ayush Verma took bronze with a personal best of 17.88m in his fifth attempt. The event uses a points-based system to assess athletes from different classifications.
(IANS)
