Shymkent (Kazakhstan), Aug 26 (PTI) – In a brilliant display of skill and precision, Olympian Sift Kaur Samra clinched the individual gold in the women's 50m rifle 3 positions event at the Asian Shooting Championships on Tuesday. She also contributed to India's triumph in the team event.
The 23-year-old world record holder fired an impressive score of 459.2 in the final, narrowly outshooting China's Yang Yujie who scored 458.8. Samra, along with her teammates Anjum Moudgil and Ashi Chouksey, propelled India to the top of the podium in the team event with an aggregate score of 1753 points.
India currently holds the second spot in the overall medal standings with 20 medals, nine of which are gold. China leads the table with 24 medals, including 13 golds.
This gold marked Samra's fourth at the Asian Championships. She got off to a strong start by leading the qualification with a score of 589, entering the eight-shooter final in the No.1 position.
Another Indian, Shriyanka Sadandi, topped the qualification round but couldn't compete in the final as she was participating for 'Ranking Points Only' (RPO) and thus was ineligible for medals.
Samra demonstrated her mettle in the finals with scores of 151.0 and 156.2 in the kneeling and prone positions respectively. In the standing-elimination round, she maintained her lead despite a formidable challenge from her Chinese opponent, ensuring victory by a 0.4 point margin.
Japan’s Nobata Misaki secured the bronze with a score of 448.2, while Chouksey, entering the final in fourth place, concluded the event in seventh position with 402.8 points. Veteran shooter Anjum finished 22nd out of 41 competitors.
Leading from the front, Samra guided the Indian team, comprising herself, Anjum, and Ashi, to a remarkable gold medal finish with individual scores of 589 for Samra, 586 for Ashi, and 578 for Anjum. They outperformed Japan (1750) and South Korea (1745).
Juniors Excel
Indian teenage shooter Anushka Thokur claimed her first international medal in style by winning gold in the junior women's 50m rifle 3 positions event. Alongside Prachi Gaikwad and Mahit Sandhu, she secured a team gold victory as well.
Anushka, already a national championships and Khelo India Youth Games medallist, delivered a stellar performance with a final score of 460.7, winning comfortably. South Korea’s Oh Sehee took silver with 455.7, while her compatriot Sim Yeojin finished with bronze at 443.9.
The eight-shooter final also featured Indians Sandhu and Gaikwad, who finished fifth and sixth, respectively.
In the team competition, Anushka scored 583, Gaikwad 588, and Sandhu 587, leading India to an aggregate score of 1758 and a gold medal. South Korea and Kazakhstan completed the podium with scores of 1740 and 1706, respectively.
In another success story, Sameer from India won the junior men’s 25m rapid-fire bronze with a score of 21 in the six-shooter final. Teammates Suraj Sharma and Abhinav Choudhary finished fifth and sixth, respectively, contributing to a team gold with an aggregate score of 1724.
India's Haris Sabeera and Addya Katyal achieved top honors in the junior women's trap by securing the gold and silver with scores of 39 and 38, respectively. Their combined efforts with Bhavya Tripathi brought home the trap team gold with an aggregate of 324, besting Kazakhstan's 323.
The junior men's trap team, consisting of Arya Vansh Tyagi, Arjun, and Udhav Rathore, captured gold with a combined score of 328. Arya Vansh narrowly missed individual gold, settling for silver after a tiebreaker with Kazakhstan’s Nikita Moisseyev.
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