BOOM-BOOM! Manu shoots second successive gold
New Delhi, March 6: Sixteen year old Manu Bhaker claimed her second successive gold medal to help India consolidate top spot at the ISSF World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Partnering Om Prakash Mitharval, the Haryana girl clinched the 10m air pistol mixed team title, a day after she won the women’s 10m air pistol individual gold, in her senior World Cup debut.
Deepak Kumar and Mehuli Ghosh won the country’s sixth medal of the competition — a bronze in the 10m air rifle mixed team event.
India have three gold and four bronze medals so far.
Deepak and Mehuli shot 435.1 in the five-team final, finishing behind Romania’s Alin Moldoveanu and LauraGeorgeta Coman, who shot 498.4 for silver.
China’s Xu Hong and Chen Keduo won gold in a world record score of 502.0.
After her victory Manu said, “I am grateful to all my coaches for their advice and the hours they have put in to hone my technique.”
She broke Heena Sidhu’s long-standing national record to win the 10m air pistol event at the 61st nationals in Thiruvanthapuram last December, winning 15 medals, including nine golds, during the tournament.
Both Indian entries in the 10m air pistol mixed team event made it through to the medal rounds on the third day of competitions in Guadalajara on Monday.
Manu and Mitharval shot 770 in qualification to be placed second behind the German husband-wife pairing of Christian and Sandra Reitz, who shot 777 for a qualifications world record score.
Mahima Agrawal and Shahzar Rizvi shot 763 to qualify fourth among 16 teams for the five-team final round.
In the final, three pairs were in contention for the top spot — Manu and Mitharval, the Reitzs and France’s Celine Goberville and Florian Fouquet.
With the final six shots
Haryana’s 16-yearold Manu Bhaker clinched the 10m air pistol mixed team title partnering Om Prakash Mitharval, a day after she won the women’s 10m air pistol individual gold, on her senior World Cup debut.
remaining, the Germans were ahead of Manu and Mitharval by 0.1 point, but the Indians finished stronger to clinch gold after 48 shots, scoring 476.1 points to the German pair’s 475.2.
In the women’s trap event, India’s best finisher was Seema Tomar, who shot 111 in qualifying to end 15th, ahead of Shreyasi Singh (106, 22nd) and Shagun Chowdhary (101, 26th).
In men’s trap, after the first day of qualification round, Kynan Chenai shot 49 out of 50 to be sixth, while Zoravar Singh Sandhu shot 46 to lie 28th. Manavjit Singh
Sandhu shot 42 to be placed 47th. — PTI