Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal (Image credit: X)
NEW DELHI: India enjoyed a memorable day at the 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya on Monday as Mona Agarwal won gold and Avani Lekhara claimed silver in the women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 event.Mona finished with a score of 250.0 points, while Avani came a close second with 249.6 points. South Korea's Lee Yunri won the bronze medal with 227.9 points.
The Indian shooters remained in the fight for the top spot throughout the final, but Mona finished ahead of Avani by just 0.4 points to secure the gold medal.The silver medal adds to Avani's record at the Asian Para Games. She had won gold at the 2022 Hangzhou Games and continued her medal-winning run at the 2026 edition.The result gave India a 1-2 finish in the event, with both shooters finishing ahead of the rest of the field.
Mona edges Avani in a close finish
Mona produced a consistent performance in the final to finish with 250.0 points. Avani also put up a strong challenge and ended with 249.6 points, falling just short of the gold medal.
The difference between the two Indian shooters was only 0.4 points, making it a closely fought contest for the top two positions.
Lee Yunri finished third with 227.9 points to take the bronze medal.
Mona sets qualification record
Mona had also topped the qualification round with 629.1 points after six series. Her score set a new Asian Para Games qualification record, breaking the previous mark held by China's Zhang Cuiping.She also came close to the world record of 629.4 points, which is jointly held by fellow Indian shooter Avani Lekhara and Slovakia's Veronika Vadovicova.Avani also delivered a strong performance in the qualification round to secure her place in the final before going on to win silver.