All you need to know about Avani Lekhara - India's rifle shooter at the Paralympics

Avani Lekhara is one of India's budding stars in para-shooting. She will be part of the 54-member Indian contingent for the Paralympics in Tokyo.

The 19-year-old has been making waves at the international level. She will be hoping to have an exceptional outing in her debut campaign at the Paralympics and win India its first medal in para-shooting.

Here are a few things you need to know about the rifle shooter.

The Bullseye https://t.co/c6jcp171PM

— Avani Lekhara (@AvaniLekhara) July 23, 2021

#5 Avani Lekhara suffered a horrific accident at the age of 11

Avani Lekhara suffered a horrific car accident in 2012, which caused severe injuries to her spinal cord. She has been bound to a wheelchair since the accident.

Lekhara's life changed after she read Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra's autobiography, 'A Shot At History', which inspired her to take up shooting. In her very first Rajasthan state championship in 2015, Lekhara won a bronze and announced herself in style to the para-shooting world.

#4 What is Avani Lekhara's world ranking ?

Avani Lekhara is currently ranked fifth in women's 10m air rifle standing SH1. She bagged a silver medal at the recent Para Shooting World Cup. Lekhara scored 248.7 in the final and missed out on gold by a 0.3 point margin.

#3 How many medals has Avani Lekhara won in her career?

🎯 P2 - Women's 10m Air Pistol SH1🥇 Rubina Francis 🇮🇳 - 238.1🥈 Bigaisha Makhayeva 🇰🇿 - 230.4🥉 Kriisztina David 🇭🇺 - 211.0 pic.twitter.com/OposC7w6wO

— #ShootingParaSport #Tokyo2020 (@ShootingPara) June 15, 2021

Avani Lekhara won a silver medal at the IPC Para Shooting World Cup in 2017. She added another medal after winning silver at the 2019 Para Shooting World Cup in Osijek, Croatia. Lekhara won the gold at the first National Para-shooting championships in the women's R2 10m air rifle women's SH1 earlier this year.

#2 Avani Lekhara's events at the Paralympics 2020

Avani Lekhara will be competing in four events at the Paralympics:

Women's R2 - 10m air rifle SH1

Women's R8 - 50m rifle 3 positions SH1

Mixed R3 - 10m air rifle prone SH1

Mixed R6 - 50m rifle prone SH1

#1 Avani Lekhara's biggest competition at the Paralympics

Avani Lekhara has been sensational in international competitions over the last few years. However, she will face a stiff challenge at the Paralympics from Ukraine's Iryna Shchetnik and Slovakia's Veronika Vadovicova. The two are currently ranked World No.1 and 2, respectively. Lekhara will have to be at her very best if she hopes to compete against these two European heavyweights.