Tokyo Paralympics silver medallist Bhavina Patel won a silver medal in women’s singles Classes 4-5 at the ITTF Costa Brava Spanish Para Open 2023 last week. Bhavina was pitted against Germany’s Sandra Mikolaschek in the final but failed to get into any sort of rhythm in the match and was beaten 2-11, 4-11, 6-11. Earlier, Bhavina had started her group engagements with an easy 11-3, 11-6, 11-3 win over Spain’s Cristina Rubio. The next group clash proved tougher but the Mehsana-born para paddler fought back after losing the opening game to beat South Korea’s Kyoung Shin Mi 5-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-8. Bhavina then dominated her quarterfinal opponent France’s Flora Vautier to triumph 11-5, 11-2, 11-6. She sustained the momentum in her 3-0 semifinal victory over Joyce De Oliveira of Brazil.
Bhyan qualifies for Para Worlds with Asian record
Ekta Bhyan qualified for the World Para Athletics Championships as the Indian team returned home with six medals from the Dubai World Para Athletics Grand Prix. The Indian contingent, which had several youngsters making their international debut in Dubai, won four silver and two bronze medals. There were altogether seven world records and 45 regional records, making the event a great success.
