Rubina Francis bags bronze in 10m Air Pistol SH1, India's 5th medal in Paris Paralympics

The para shooter from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, clinched India’s fifth medal at the ongoing Games.

Rubina Francis garnered a total of 211.1 to reach third place in the eight-woman final.

She had managed to qualify for the last phase at the seventh spot in the qualification round earlier on Saturday.

Rubina Francis became India’s fourth medal winner at the Paris Paralympics in shooting, after Avani Lekhara (gold), Mona Agarwal (bronze), and Manish Narwal (silver).

In the Tokyo Olympics, she had stood 7th in the finals of the event but went further in this Games.

Rubina Francis bio

Rubina Francis belongs to a lower-middle-class family. She was born with a leg dysfunction. Her father, Simon Francis, is a mechanic, who struggled to back her passion for shooting due to financial constraints, reported the Indian Express.

She began shooting in 2015. Her father's persistent support helped her reach Jabalpur’s Gun for Glory Academy in 2017.

According to the report, she drew inspiration for shooting from Olympic medallist Gagan Narang.

Under the mentorship of Jai Prakash Nautiyal, ehe exhibited her talent, with her selection at the MP Shooting Academy.

Her skills sharpened, under the guidance of renowned coach Jaspal Rana, earning her first international medal.

The 2018 France World Cup was the turning point in her career, the report said.

As Rubina realised the significance of securing a Paralympic quota, she intensified her training.

Under the training of Chief Coach Subhash Rana, Rubina Francis’s shooting talent flourished and numerous medals at national and international levels followed along with world records.

One of her biggest achievements came at Lima 2021 World Cup where she booked a Paralympic berth in the P2 category, leading her way to the 2021 Tokyo Paralympic Games.