Historic Win: India Celebrates First Judo Medal at Paralympics

India's para-judo player Kapil Parmar wins the first-ever Paralympics medal in Judo despite losing in the semifinals. Praveen Kumar secures a gold medal in high jump, contributing to India's record medal tally at the ongoing Paris Paralympics.

India's para-judo player Kapil Parmar has expressed happiness at earning India's first-ever Paralympics medal in Judo. The world number one para-judo player lost in the semifinal and bowed out of the Men's J1 - 60 KG category at the ongoing Paris Paralympics on Thursday. However, he clinched a bronze medal by defeating Brazil's Elielton de Oliveira.

Speaking to ANI, Kapil said that he worked on sound techniques with his coach and relied on his coach's commands for his moves. However, during the semifinals, the crowd's loud cheering made it difficult for him to hear, leading to his loss. "This is the first time we got a medal in blind Judo. My hard work of 12 years paid off. I was my coach's best student," Kapil told ANI.

The Indian player executed an Ippon in 33 seconds to secure the bronze medal. Kapil's triumph marked India's 25th medal at the ongoing Paralympics. Kapil entered the bronze medal clash after enduring a 0-10 defeat against Iran's Banitaba Khorram Abadi in the semifinals earlier on Thursday.

Praveen Kumar secured a gold medal for the country in the men's high jump T64 final, setting an Asian record with a jump of 2.08 metres. Derek Loccident from the USA and Temurbek Giyazov from Uzbekistan claimed the second and third spots, respectively.

With this win, India's medal tally at the ongoing Paralympics has risen to 26, including six golds, nine silvers, and 11 bronze medals. India's performance has surpassed its previous record of five gold medals set in Tokyo 2020. This year, India sent its largest Paralympics contingent ever, with 84 athletes competing in 12 sports.

(With inputs from agencies.)