<p>A car accident in 2012 left Avani Lekhara wheelchair-bound but on Monday the shooter felt "on top of the world" after becoming the first Indian woman to snare a Paralympic gold medal.</p>.<p>Focussing on only one shot at a time and shutting out everything else did the trick for Lekhara. She fired her way to the top of the podium in the R-2 women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 event.</p>.<p>"I can't describe this feeling, I'm feeling like I'm on top of the world. It's unexplainable," she said after the triumph.</p>.<p>Lekhara, who sustained spinal cord injuries in a car accident in 2012, finished with a world record equalling total of 249.6, which is also a new Paralympic record.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/other-sports/paralympics-avani-lekhara-clinches-gold-in-womens-10m-ar-standing-sh1-1025030.html" target="_blank">Read | Paralympics: Avani Lekhara clinches gold in women's 10m AR Standing SH1</a></strong></p>.<p>On staying calm through the final, Lekhara said, "I was just saying one thing, that I have to take one shot at a time. There's nothing else that matters now, just take one shot at a time and just finish it.</p>.<p>"I just think that I have to follow the process. Beyond that, I try not to think about the score or the medal tally."</p>.<p>The 19-year-old from Jaipur, who started shooting on the insistence of her father in 2015 at a city shooting range, was delighted to have become the first Indian woman to win a Paralympics gold.</p>.<p>"I'm so happy I could be the one to contribute it. Hopefully there's a lot of medals more to come."</p>.<p>She has not looked back since firing her first shot some six years ago, enjoying every bit of the precision sport while working her way to glory at the showpiece.</p>.<p>"It seems very homely when I lift a rifle. I feel a connection towards it. When you have to focus and the consistency, that's what I like about shooting," she said.</p>.<p>When asked how she began shooting, Lekhara said, "Summer vacations 2015, my father took me to the shooting range. I shot some shots and they were pretty okay. So I just started as a hobby, and here I am."</p>.<p>She will also be competing in the mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1, the women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions SH1 and the mixed 50m Rifle Prone event.</p>.<p>In the SH1 Rifle category, shooters are able to hold a gun with arms.</p>.<p>The athletes have an impairment in their legs, for example amputations or paraplegia.</p>.<p>She is only the fourth Indian athlete to win a Paralympics gold after swimmer Murlikant Petkar (1972), javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia (2004 and 2016) and high jumper Mariyappan Thangavelu (2016).</p>
<p>A car accident in 2012 left Avani Lekhara wheelchair-bound but on Monday the shooter felt "on top of the world" after becoming the first Indian woman to snare a Paralympic gold medal.</p>.<p>Focussing on only one shot at a time and shutting out everything else did the trick for Lekhara. She fired her way to the top of the podium in the R-2 women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 event.</p>.<p>"I can't describe this feeling, I'm feeling like I'm on top of the world. It's unexplainable," she said after the triumph.</p>.<p>Lekhara, who sustained spinal cord injuries in a car accident in 2012, finished with a world record equalling total of 249.6, which is also a new Paralympic record.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/other-sports/paralympics-avani-lekhara-clinches-gold-in-womens-10m-ar-standing-sh1-1025030.html" target="_blank">Read | Paralympics: Avani Lekhara clinches gold in women's 10m AR Standing SH1</a></strong></p>.<p>On staying calm through the final, Lekhara said, "I was just saying one thing, that I have to take one shot at a time. There's nothing else that matters now, just take one shot at a time and just finish it.</p>.<p>"I just think that I have to follow the process. Beyond that, I try not to think about the score or the medal tally."</p>.<p>The 19-year-old from Jaipur, who started shooting on the insistence of her father in 2015 at a city shooting range, was delighted to have become the first Indian woman to win a Paralympics gold.</p>.<p>"I'm so happy I could be the one to contribute it. Hopefully there's a lot of medals more to come."</p>.<p>She has not looked back since firing her first shot some six years ago, enjoying every bit of the precision sport while working her way to glory at the showpiece.</p>.<p>"It seems very homely when I lift a rifle. I feel a connection towards it. When you have to focus and the consistency, that's what I like about shooting," she said.</p>.<p>When asked how she began shooting, Lekhara said, "Summer vacations 2015, my father took me to the shooting range. I shot some shots and they were pretty okay. So I just started as a hobby, and here I am."</p>.<p>She will also be competing in the mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1, the women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions SH1 and the mixed 50m Rifle Prone event.</p>.<p>In the SH1 Rifle category, shooters are able to hold a gun with arms.</p>.<p>The athletes have an impairment in their legs, for example amputations or paraplegia.</p>.<p>She is only the fourth Indian athlete to win a Paralympics gold after swimmer Murlikant Petkar (1972), javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia (2004 and 2016) and high jumper Mariyappan Thangavelu (2016).</p>