Lima 2023: Male Ones to Watch

Peruvian capital Lima will host the ninth edition of the Shooting Para Sport World Championships from 21 to 28 this month. 

More than 260 athletes from over 50 nations will take part in the first-ever World Championships in the Americas. 

Here are some of the ones to watch among the male athletes competing at the Las Palmas Air Base shooting range.

Dragan Ristic (Serbia)

The two-time Paralympic champion from Tokyo 2020 has three World Championships gold medals in his CV but failed to reach the podium at last year’s edition in Al Ain, UAE. Ristic is set to compete in two individual events in Lima, the R5 - mixed 10m air rifle prone SH2 and the R9 - mixed 50m rifle prone SH2 – the two events in which he topped the podium at the last Paralympics.

Jinho Park (South Korea)

Jinho Park will be a familiar face during Lima 2023 competing in four individual events and joining the best of Korea in team events. The 46-year-old has never left the World Championships empty-handed picking 11 medals since his debut at Suhl 2014. Park also has two Paralympic podiums from Tokyo 2020: a silver in the R3 - mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1 and a bronze in the R1 - men's 10m air rifle standing SH1. 

Jorge Arcela (Peru)

The Las Palmas shooting range is a special place for Arcela. Not only because it is the shooting range he calls home, but also because it was there he achieved the biggest result of his career. Four years ago, Arcela put Peru on the podium when shooting Para sport made its debut as part of the Parapan American Games programme. He took a silver in the R3 - mixed 10m air rifle prone SH1, one of the three events in which he will be competing this year.

Manish Narwal (India)

India has taken shooting Para sport by storm with a group of athletes who have established the country as a powerhouse. Manish Narwal is one the stars of the 18-strong team travelling to Peru. At only 19, he led an India one-two triumph in the P4 at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. This time in Lima, he will be in action in the P1 - men's 10m air pistol SH1. In October Narwal will be defending his title in the same event at the Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China.

Michael Johnson (New Zealand)

The Auckland native is one of the most experienced athletes in the sport, having represented New Zealand at every Paralympic Games since Athens 2004 (when he took gold in the R4 - 10m air rifle standing). Since then he added other two Paralympic medals and five World Championships podiums to his CV (the first at Sargans 2006 and the latest at Sydney 2019). Lima 2023 will mark the first Worlds since Johnson started his transition to coaching to support the shooting programme in his country.

All the action from Lima 2023 will be live on World Shooting Para Sports website and social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.