New Delhi: Indian para-athlete Preethi Pal added another bronze medal to her tally as she finished third in the women’s 200m T35 final event at the Paris Paralympics 2024 on Sunday. This is India’s first-ever medal in the 200m track event and Preethi has become the first-ever Indian woman track and field athlete to win two medals at the Paralympics or Olympics, etching her name in the historybooks.
She won the bronze medal with a personal best time of 30.01 seconds and the effort brings India’s sixth medal at the Paris Games. She claimed the spotlight when she won India’s first medal at a 100m event on Friday which was also India’s first athletics medal in a Paralympics track event. She completed the women’s T35 100m competition with a personal best time of 14.21 seconds.
On Sunday, she gave the nation its second para-athletics medal in the ongoing Games. It is noteworthy that all the athletics medals India had won since the 1984 edition of the Paralympics have come from field events. The T35 classification includes athletes who have coordination impairments such as hypertonia, ataxia, and athetosis.
The Meerut-born girl now has two medals in two events as she becomes the only seventh Indian to win multiple Paralympic medals. Her bronze medal effort has surely brought smiles to the faces of Indian fans who faced some heartbreaking results on Day 4 (Sunday). China shone in the 200m final, claiming the top two spots.
Xia Zhou clinched the gold medal as she clocked 28.15 seconds while her compatriot Guo Qianqian registered a time of 29.09 seconds. The winning troika coincidentally emulated the results of the 100m event held on Friday.
PM Modi congratulates Preethi
After talking to all the medal winners so far including Preethi on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the youngster for a “historic achievement” at the Paris Paralympics with a post on his “X” (formerly Twitter) account.
“A historic achievement by Preeti Pal, as she wins her second medal in the same edition of the Paralympics 2024 with a Bronze in the Women’s 200m T35 event! She is an inspiration for the people of India. Her dedication is truly remarkable,” the PM wrote.
A historic achievement by Preeti Pal, as she wins her second medal in the same edition of the #Paralympics2024 with a Bronze in the Women’s 200m T35 event! She is an inspiration for the people of India. Her dedication is truly remarkable. #Cheer4Bharat pic.twitter.com/4q3IPJDUII
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 1, 2024
Preethi Pal entered the record books as she bagged a second bronze medal at the Paris Paralympics 2024, finishing third in the women’s 200m T35 final at the Stade de France on Sunday. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
