India put in a stellar performance at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix, finishing with a stunning medal tally, with Preeti Pal stealing the show with a dominant sprint performance on the final day.A two-time medalist at the 2024 Summer Paralympics, Preity had another impressive performance as she won gold in the women’s 200m (tied 35th-37th). The 25-year-old from Meerut finished comfortably ahead of the rest of the field with a time of 30.26 seconds, adding to the 100m gold medal she had won a day earlier.Karina Machulskaia of Russia won the silver medal with a time of 32.22 seconds and Bina Shambhubha of India completed the podium by winning the bronze medal with a time of 32.35 seconds.India finished the tournament with a remarkable 208 medals (75 gold, 69 silver and 64 bronze), underlining the country’s growing strength in para athletics, despite relatively limited international participation in the field. The Russian team ranked second with 35 medals (15 gold medals, 14 silver medals, 6 bronze medals), and Bosnia and Herzegovina ranked third with 3 medals (1 gold medal, 2 silver medals) among the eight participating teams.Looking back on her performance since winning her second gold medal, Preity admits that she came close to achieving the target she had set for herself.“I am one microsecond away from my target for the Grand Prix. Overall, everything is going well. In four days, I will go to the Nationals and since it is the off-season, I am happy with my performance,” Preeti said after winning her second gold medal.She also revealed that her training performance showed that she is capable of running faster.“My personal best is 30.03 seconds and I’ve actually run 29.6 seconds, which is encouraging. However, I’ve noticed that I get tired as I get closer to the finish line, which hasn’t happened before. I’m currently working on improving that,” she added.India also enjoyed success in the field events, bagging all three medals in the men’s shot put F57 category. Shubham Juyal won the gold with a throw of 14.45 meters, Bhagat Singh won the silver with a throw of 13.29 meters and Priyans Kumar won the bronze with a throw of 13.07 meters. Juyal’s performance was a significant improvement on his 13.72m throw at last year’s World Para Athletics Championships, highlighting the steady rise of the Indian Army’s para-athletes.In the men’s 200m T35 event, Vinay won the gold medal with a time of 28.18 seconds, ahead of Anubhav Choudhary who won the silver medal with a time of 29.49 seconds. Hong Kong player Cui Yiu-po won the bronze medal.The Indian team once again swept its opponents in the men’s 200m T37-T44 category. Rakeshbhai Bhatt won the gold with a time of 25.20 seconds, Siddharth Manju Bellary won the silver with a time of 28.23 seconds and Ravikiran Asarelli won the bronze with a time of 31.50 seconds.The host team also dominated the men’s 800m T53-T54 competition. Manojkumar Sabapathi won the gold medal with a time of 1:57.41, Manikandan Jothi won the silver with a time of 2:11.14 and Kamalakanta Nayak won the bronze with a time of 2:20.83.
Simran hopes she won’t be stripped of world medals
Meanwhile, visually impaired Indian sprinter Simran Sharma Despite her pacesetter’s suspension, she said she hopes to retain the medal she won at last year’s World Para Athletics Championships.Simran won gold in women’s 100m (T12) and silver in 200m at the championships. However, according to the list released by the National Anti-Doping Agency on October 9, 2025, her front-runner Umar Saifi was provisionally suspended for testing positive for trotasone, a banned anabolic steroid. According to reports, the test was conducted during the National Open in Delhi on September 7, 2025.According to the regulations of the International Paralympic Committee, the leader of the T12 event is classified as “athlete support personnel”, which means that the leader’s violation of doping regulations may cause the athlete’s performance to be cancelled.Simran, who is currently out injured and therefore will not compete in the ongoing Grand Prix, said she remains optimistic that her medal will not be taken away from her.“I am very hopeful that I will not lose my medal. I have worked hard for them. There have been instances where athletes were not stripped of their medals even if their guides tested positive for banned substances,” Simran said on the sidelines of the Grand Prix.She has since emerged from Saifee’s suspension and is now working with a new frontrunner in preparation for the Asian Para Games, scheduled to be held in Japan later this year.Asked when a final decision on her appeal would be made, Simran said the timeline remained unclear.“I don’t know yet, but I am continuing my preparations for the Asian Para Games. I did not participate in the first Grand Prix of the season in Dubai last month or the ongoing competition here because I want to keep my body injury-free at the Asian Para Games,” she said.
