Indian archer Harvinder Singh won gold in the men’s individual recurve open final at the Paralympics, defeating Poland’s Lukasz Ciszek 6-0. This is his second consecutive Paralympic medal, following a historic bronze in Paris three years ago, making him the first Indian archer to accomplish this feat. Singh had previously defeated Iran’s Mohammad Reza Arab Ameri 7-3 in the semifinals despite trailing 1-3.
This triumph is India’s second archery medal in Paris, following Sheetal Devi and Rakesh Kumar’s bronze in the mixed team compound open event. India’s total medal tally now stands at 22, with four gold, eight silver, and ten bronze, breaking the previous high of 19 in Tokyo.
Singh’s journey began with a 7-3 triumph over Chinese Taipei’s Tseng Lung-Hui, followed by a 6-2 win over Indonesia’s Setiawan and another 6-2 win over Colombia’s Hector Julio Ramirez. Singh, 33, will compete in the mixed team recurve open event with Pooja.
Singh, from Kaithal, Haryana, was paralysed as a youngster as a result of a bad reaction to dengue medication. Inspired by the 2012 London Paralympics, he took up archery and won gold in the 2018 Asian Para Games, a few days after losing his mother.
