Rather than focusing on Lee’s score, Avani kept her eyes on the standings, where she was in the silver-medal position.As Lee fired her last shot, Avani’s name suddenly appeared at the top, and a broad smile spread across the 22-year-old Indian shooter’s face.
Avani’s steady 10.5 shot left the result uncertain until Lee, under pressure, delivered a disappointing 6.8. This unexpected turn allowed Avani to secure the gold medal by a significant margin of 1.9 points.
Avani successfully defended her women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 title in Paris, making history as the first Indian woman to win two gold medals at the Paralympic Games. It also marked the first time India achieved a double podium finish in the same event at the Paralympic Games.
“It feels nice. I am so happy. It was a very close final. Each shooter had a difference of just 0.1 or 0.2. It was only the last shot that decided the gold medal. When I shot my last shot, I was just waiting for her shot. The gold had to be decided by that final shot. I didn’t see that 6.8 coming from her. I was just looking at the standings. The moment I saw myself at the top spot, I was so happy,” Avani told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview from Paris.
“This time it was a little difficult because there were a lot of expectations. There was a bit more pressure compared to last time (in the Tokyo Paralympics). But I am happy that I was able to do it and defend my title,” she said.
“It was harder this time. I have matured as a person and a shooter as well. Tokyo was my maiden Paralympics, and I learned a lot from it. I carried all those learnings from Tokyo to Paris. They helped me a lot. I really worked hard for this. A lot of people look up to you, and defending the title gave me a lot of happiness. I am so, so happy that I lived up to those expectations. Maintaining the top position is a challenge,” the Indian shooter said.
Avani credited her mother as her lucky charm and acknowledged her coach, former Indian shooter Suma Shirur, for her meteoric rise.
Since 2018, Avani has been training under Suma Shirur at the Lakshya Shooting Club. She makes the journey to Navi Mumbai 3-4 times a year to train with Suma.
“It was not just my result or a single person’s result. A lot of effort came from various people. It was a team effort. I was happy to work with the same team I worked with in Tokyo. I’m happy the result is the same (laughs). My mother was there—she is my lucky charm. My coach, Suma ma’am, and I have a good connection. You need someone who can translate your thoughts into words, and Suma ma’am is the one who helps me find the right answers,” Avani said.
“Gita also helped me a lot. ‘Karm karo, fal ki ichcha mat karo’ [Do your work, don’t worry about the results]. I also learned that nothing is constant, change is inevitable—this has inspired me a lot,” she said.
‘AVANI A MATURED SHOOTER’
Avani’s coach, Suma Shirur, a silver medalist at the 2002 Busan Asian Games and bronze medalist at the 2006 Doha Asian Games, emphasized the extensive technical work involved in preparing Avani for the Paris Paralympic Games.
“I am extremely happy with the way shooters have performed in the Paris Olympics and Paralympics. It is the first time Indian shooters have entered the league of high performances since 2004. I was in the final, Abhinav (Bindra) was in the final, and Rajyavardhan won the silver too. That’s when the ball started rolling for India. Avani is the one who started the winning streak for the Indian shooting team by winning gold in Tokyo. It was huge for Indian shooting. From there on, Indian shooters gained confidence and never looked back. Now, we have a series of medals in shooting in both the Olympics and Paralympics,” Suma said.
“Until Tokyo, a lot of technical work was involved in helping Avani understand the basics of shooting and mastering the technique. After that, we experimented with a lot of equipment because shooting is a very technical sport, and every piece of equipment comes with its own advantages,” she said.
Suma described Avani as a mature shooter and noted that defending a title is never easy for any sportsperson.
“She has matured as a shooter. I have always had a lot of confidence in her. After her gold medal in Tokyo, I was confident that she would defend her title because I knew she had prepared herself really well. We both worked a lot on many aspects. Defending a title is really difficult. There are a lot of expectations. Defending a title comes with a lot of pressure. This time, it was more about working on the mind and preparing yourself to handle such big pressure,” the coach said.