KIPG 2025: Debutants Alphia James, Mandeep steal badminton spotlight as Paralympians dominate
New Delhi, March 22 (IANS) India’s Paralympians and international stars played true to form but the Khelo India Para Games 2025 also saw some standout performances from gold medallists as the badminton competition came to a close at the Indira Gandhi Stadium on the Day 3 of the Games here on Saturday.
At the time of writing this report, 75 gold medals in athletics, badminton, and shooting had been decided. Overnight leaders, Tamil Nadu led the medal tally with 15 gold while Haryana stood second with 14. Maharashtra are third with eight while Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh had seven gold each.
In the first half of Saturday, the focus was on badminton. India’s top para-badminton players did not disappoint in their respective categories. Paris 2024 gold medallist Nitesh Kumar, Tokyo 2020 gold medallist Krishna Nagar, Paris 2024 bronze winner Manisha Ramdass and 13-time national champion Sanjeev Kumar emerged champions.
But it was Kerala’s 21-year-old wheelchair-bound Alphia James and Uttarakhand’s Mandeep Kaur who stole the show on the badminton courts as they won a gold each in their respective categories. A BCom student, Alphia lost her father in 2010 and have been supported by her brother and mother ever since.
Having started as a basketball player, Alphia suffered a spinal cord injury in 2017. After almost five years, she resumed her sporting journey and started playing para-badminton. She made a golden debut at the Khelo India Para Games 2025 here in Delhi after winning an event in Spain recently.
A three-time arm-wrestling national champion, Mandeep, switched to badminton due to her love for the game and faced immense success in the sport. Winning gold in her first-ever international tournament in Uganda, the 29-year-old has now made a dream Khelo India Para Games debut.
“It’s a great feeling to win the gold and I’m really thankful to SAI and the government for organising KIPG. The key was to keep calm and that’s what I did. I lost the first game and was trailing in the second at one stage but I pushed myself to make a comeback and eventually win the game,” said Mandeep after her victory.
Star attraction Nitesh Kumar said, “I’m feeling really good that I won the gold. This is the first time that I have played KIPG and to win the tournament is nice. Moreover, it’s a positive start to the season for me and I hope to do well.”
The third day of the Khelo India Para Games also saw the start of the archery competition at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The 2024 Paris Paralympics bronze medallist Sheetal Devi and promising newcomer Payal Nag were in action. One wonder archer without arms (Sheetal) met another without arms and legs (Payal) to make for some stunning visuals. Both qualified for the finals on Sunday.
Shooting action also began at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range as Paralympic gold medallist Avani Lekhara continued her control in the women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 category, securing the top position. The Rajasthan shooter narrowly edged out her state teammate Mona Agarwal, who claimed silver, while Aakansha from Uttar Pradesh rounded off the podium with a score of 221.5.
This success came amid strong performances across other shooting events, with Maharashtra’s Swaroop Mahavir Unhalkar and Kavin Vinod Kengnalkar claiming gold and silver, respectively, in the men’s 10m air rifle standing SH1, separated by just 0.1 points. Meanwhile, Haryana’s Simran Sharma topped the podium in the mixed 10m air rifle standing SH2 category.
–IANS
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