Watch: Devendra Jhajharia scripts history, wins his second Paralympic gold
Rio de Janeiro: Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia left an inedible mark in the annals of Indian sports history, becoming the first athlete from the country to win two gold medals at the Paralympics when he won the top honour in the men's F46 category on Tuesday.
The 36-year-old, who won his previous gold at the 2004 Athens Games, bettered his own world record to finish on top with a throw of 63.97 at the Olympic Stadium.
Guo Chunliang of China (59.93 metres) won silver and Sri Lanka's Dinesh Herath (58.23 metres) bagged bronze, respectively.
With this remarkable feat, Devendra has become the only Indian to win two golds in an individual event at the Olympics or Paralympics.
He had his arm severed after he accidentally touched a 11,000 volt live cable at the age of eight.
Devendra Jhajharia creates history by becoming first Indian to win two Paralympic gold medals. #Rio2016 #Paralympics pic.twitter.com/w8RU3ff2fe
— India@Sports (@IndiaInSports) September 14, 2016
#GOLD for Devendra Jhajharia in Javelin Throw F46 with World Record of 63.97m. @DevJhajharia #Rio2016 #Paralympics pic.twitter.com/kYtM8DuQGi
— India@Sports (@IndiaInSports) September 14, 2016
On the other hand, 17 year-old Rinku could only finish fifth in the same event despite securing a personal best throw of 54.39m.
India has now increased its medal tally to four at the Rio Paralympics. Earlier, Mariyappan Thangavelu had won gold in the men's high jump, while Varun Bhati had secured a bronze in the same event.
Shot putter Deepa Malik then scripted history, becoming the first Indian female paralympian to win a medal (Silver).
