A standout feature was the senior team’s showing in the 15 Olympic events across rifle, pistol and shotgun.
Photo: IANS
Curtains came down on the 16th Asian Shooting Championship in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, with India producing a historic best-ever performance. After 12 days of high-level competition, the Indian shooters topped the medal tally for the first time in the tournament’s history, claiming an unprecedented 50 gold medals.
A standout feature was the senior team’s showing in the 15 Olympic events across rifle, pistol and shotgun. India secured six gold, two silver and three bronze medals, finishing second only to China, who bagged eight golds. Hosts Kazakhstan claimed the remaining Olympic gold.
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“It is a spectacular performance and it is quite clear that the confidence of the Shooting ecosystem is sky-high and significantly boosted by our performance at the Paris Olympics. Particularly pleasing is the performance of the juniors, which tells you that Indian shooting has just begun and greater things are sure to come in the near future,” said Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo, President of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI).
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Overall, India closed the championship just short of the 100-medal mark with 99 medals — 50 gold, 26 silver and 23 bronze. Kazakhstan finished second with 70 medals, including 21 gold, while China was third with 15 golds and 37 overall medals.
The seniors’ highlights included two-time Olympian Elavenil Valarivan clinching her second Asian crown in women’s Air Rifle with an Asian record score, in addition to a mixed team gold with Arjun Babuta. Neeru Dhanda earned her maiden Asian Championship gold in women’s trap, Sift Kaur Samra claimed her first continental title in women’s 50m rifle 3 positions and Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar successfully defended his men’s 3P crown.
India’s juniors showcased the country’s depth, sweeping all Olympic events with 10 golds, along with four silver and four bronze medals.
Other notable victories came in youth and non-Olympic categories. Former world champion Ankur Mittal bagged men’s Double Trap gold with a world record score of 107, while Rio Olympian Gurpreet Singh struck gold in men’s 25m Standard Pistol.
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