Asian Para Games: Shuttlers win two more gold as India ends with 72 podium finishes
Jakarta, Oct 13 : India recorded its best-ever showing by adding two more gold, a few silver and some bronze medals for a total of 72 podium finishes as the 2018 Asian Para Games drew to a close here Saturday.
With 15 gold, 24 silver and 33 bronze medals, India was placed ninth in the overall tally. In the last edition in 2014, India won 33 medals (3 gold, 14 silver, 16 bronze).
In men's singles SL3 class badminton, India's Pramod Bhagat defeated Ukun Rukaendi of Indonesia 21-19 15-21 21-14 to clinch the gold medal.
Athletes in the SL3 category generally have impairment in one or both lower limbs and poor walking or running balance. Athletes with cerebral palsy, bilateralpolio or loss of both legs below the knee compete in half-court (lenghtwise) to minimise the impact of their impairment.
Para shuttler Tarun added another gold for India on the final day of the event by beating Yuyang Gao of China 21-16 21-6 in the men's singles SL4 class.
The SL4 class athletes have a lesser impairment compared to SL 3 and play full-court. Players with impairment in one or both lower limbs, unilateral polio or mild cerebral palsy fall in SL4 category.
Continental giants China were at the top of the peking order with 172 gold, 88 silver and 59 bronze followed by South Korea (53 gold, 25 silver and 47 bronze) and Iran (51, 42, 43).
Earlier Friday, Paralympic medallist Deepa Malik bagged her second bronze.
K Jennitha Anto clinched the gold in women's individual rapid P1 chess event after beating Manurung Roslinda of Indonesia 1-0 in the final round, while Kishan Gangolli got the better of Majid Bagheri in the men's individual rapid VI - B2/B3 event to claim the top spot.
Rapid P1 event is for physically impaired athletes while rapid VI - B2/B3 event features partially blind competitors.
In para-badminton, Parul Parmar notched up a 21-9 21-5 victory over Wandee Kamtam of Thailand to win the gold medal in the women's singles SL3 event.
Athletes in this class have impairment in one or both lower limbs and poor walking/running balance but they play in standing positions.
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Confident we are going to win Kerala: Shashi Tharoor
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday expressed confidence in the victory of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala, saying the Congress-led alliance will win more than 75 seats out of the total 140 in the state.
Tharoor, who hails from Kerala, said he was not surprised to see the results of the exit polls, most of which predicted a victory for the UDF that has been out of power for 10 years in the state.
"We have been on the ground. I have campaigned in 59 constituencies across 12 districts out of 14. I was very confident we are going to win.
"Everything that I have picked up from not just my party colleagues and workers but also from other observers, media and others have always convinced me that we were going to score a comfortable win of above 75 seats. And all the (exit) polls have confirmed the same thing," he told reporters here.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP said he was not surprised to see the results of the exit polls but in general he was not a big fan of exit polls in India.
"Because ours is not purely a homogenous society. We have to take into account gender issue, caste issue, class issue, regional disparities. You never get a convincingly large enough sample to give an accurate poll and now there is the additional complication that we have heard about in West Bengal this year that many people are unwilling to answer the questions of the pollsters," he said.
The Congress leader said normally, it used to be below 10 per cent that people said that they would not answer.
"Even if you are a reputable exit pollster, in Bengal, one polling company has said 60 per cent of people refused to answer. So, what is the worth of a poll where 60 per cent of your respondents have not answered," he said.
Several exit polls on Wednesday predicted a comeback by the Congress-led UDF in Kerala after 10 years, dethroning the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF).
Polling for the 140-member Kerala assembly was held on April 9. Results of assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Puducherry, besides Kerala, will be announced on May 4.
