It was double jubilation for India early on Saturday morning whenMariyappan Thangavelu soared to a gold medal and compatriot Varun Singh Bhati clinched the bronze medal in the men’s high jump T-42 event at the Rio Paralympics.
Thangavelu made history by becoming the first Indian high-jumper to win a gold at the Paralympics, with a leap of 1.89 metres. Bhati jumped his personal best of 1.86 metres to finish third. While initially at the first spot, India’s other medal prospect Sharad Kumar finished at number six.