India's performance at the recently concluded Paris Paralympics 2024 will be remembered for years to come as the nation etched its name in history books by achieving its best-ever medal tally at the showpiece event. Powered by tremendous performances across various disciplines including track and field as well as shooting, the Indian contingent finished with an unprecedented haul of 29 medals comprising 7 gold, 9 silver and 13 bronze.
While athletics has been a prolific medal-generating sport for India in the past as well, what made this Paris edition truly special was the emergence of women athletes on the biggest stage. Track stars like Preethi Pal and Deepthi Jeevan jolted the country with their dramatic showings, especially considering India never won a medal in sprints before. Their gutsy displays on the field were instrumental in rewriting history books. India's overall tally of 29 podium finishes comfortably bettered its previous best mark of 19 medals witnessed at the previous Tokyo Games.
As for the overall table, China continued its stranglehold at the top with a monumental return of 220 medals including a staggering 94 golds. Having dominated the Paralympics for years now, the Chinese athletes were in a league of their own yet again by virtue of their supremacy in disciplines such as athletics and swimming. Great Britain and USA routine held on to the second and third places respectively while hosts France had plenty of reasons to rejoice with their best ever Paralympics highlighted by a gold in Blind Football. Riding high on vociferous home support across venues, the French team secured their best result on home soil.
In summary, while China's dominance was reminiscent of past editions, India's stupendous showing especially by the women will undoubtedly go down in the record books as one of its finest moments on the global stage of Paralympic sport. As the nation builds on this historic feat, there is no doubt that the overall standard and profile of Paralympic movement in India has reached newer heights.
