Dhanush Srikanth shines: Gold and world record in Deaflympics opener, Murtaza bags silver

Tokyo (The Uttam Hindu): Young Indian shooter Dhanush Srikanth opened India's account with a gold medal at the ongoing Deaflympics in Tokyo. The 23-year-old Dhanush not only won the gold medal in the men's 10m air rifle event with a brilliant performance, but also set a new world record.

Dhanush set a world record for the Deaf Final, scoring 252.2 points in the final. India dominated the event, with Mohammed Murtaza Vania of India taking the silver medal with a score of 250.1. South Korea's Baek Seunghak (223.6) settled for the bronze.

Earlier, Dhanush had also set a new Deaflympics record in the qualification round with a score of 630.6 points. Murtaza finished second with 626.3 points. This is Dhanush's second career men's 10m air rifle Deaflympics gold. He won both the individual and mixed team gold medals at the 2022 Caxias do Sul Deaflympics.

The women's team also performed brilliantly

Indian players also performed well in the women's 10 meter air rifle event. 20-year-old Mahit Sandhu won the silver medal with 250.5 points. Komal Waghmare of India won the bronze medal with 228.3 points. Lidkova Violeta of Ukraine won the gold medal in this event with a world record of 252.4 points.

Dhanush's mother, Asha Srikanth, said, "Dhanush was very confident yesterday. This performance is very inspiring for him." She explained that Dhanush, who has been hearing impaired since childhood, has undergone cochlear implant surgery twice. He hears with the help of a machine and communicates mostly through gestures.

Dhanush now looks ahead to his next competition, where he will compete with Mahit Sandhu in the 10m air rifle mixed team event on Monday. He will aim to win his fourth Deaflympics gold medal of his career.