India's para athletes raise the bar with record lll-medal haul

India's previous best stood at 72 medals in 2018 and the 54% increase in tally shows that they are on the right track

- Shantanu Srivastava

Three weeks after India logged its best ever Asian Games tally (107) in Hangzhou, the para athletes rewrote record books with an astonishing 111 medals, making it the most successful Asian Para Games (APG) campaign in country's sporting history. India's fifth-place finish is also their best in APG, bettering the ninth-place result from the 2018 Jakarta edition.

India's previous best medal haul at APG stood at 72 medals (2018), and the 54% increase in tally is a nod to the growing might of India's para athletes. "It's a big moment in India's para sports history. A few years back, no one would have believed we can win over 100 medals, but here we are," gushed shuttler Pramod Bhagat who signed off from his fourth APG with three medals.

India zoomed past the 72-medal mark on Thursday and it was only a matter of time before the magical mark of 100 was achieved. India ended the penultimate competition day at 99 medals, poised to hit the century on Saturday. The 100th medal arrived in the men's 400m T47 event with Dilip Mahadu Gavit winning the gold medal, clocking 49.48 seconds.

Anita and Narayana Konganapalle then won a s silver in PR3 mixed doubles sculls with the timing of 8:50.71. Neeraj Yadav created a Games record in men's javelin F55 event, logging a throw of 33.69m. Compatriot Tek Chand finished third with a personal best effort of 30.36m. Five of medals in chess ensured India edged out Thailand (108) and secured a fifth place.