Dane at home on range
Sampson snares air rifle gold in own backyard
SHOOTER Dane Sampson has won gold in the men’s 10m air rifle on the range where he grew up.
The Queenslander prevailed with a score of 245.0 in a tense final at Brisbane’s Belmont Shooting Complex.
He edged out Bangladeshi Abdullah Hel Baki (silver) and India’s Ravi Kumar (bronze), while 16-year-old Aussie Alex Hoberg narrowly missed the podium and finished fourth.
Sampson, 31, was a relieved man afterwards, admitting he thought he blew his gold medal chances with his final shot, which left the door open for Baki to steal the win.
However his opponent couldn’t produce the 10.0 shot he needed to capitalise, with Baki finishing on 244.7 points.
After clinching the victory, a teary-eyed Sampson embraced his father, Rodney, who is the president of Target Rifle Australia and was serving as the chief range officer for the qualification rounds.
“I pretty much here,” Sampson said.
“My mum was shooting here when she was pregnant with me, basically, literally on this range.” grew up
Sampson’s gold came after Elena Galiabovitch claimed bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol.
The Melbourne-based doctor showed nerves of steel to snare Australia’s first shooting medal by scoring 214.9 points in her first international final, as Indian 16-year-old Manu Bhaker won gold with ease, finishing with a Games record total of 240.9.
Currently working as a surgical registrar and aiming to become a neurologist, Galiabovitch had to take the last three months off work to prepare for her Games debut.
Meanwhile, 18-year-old Shepparton product Aislin Jones has reached the women’s skeet finals. However, fellow Australian and defending champion Laura Coles has been eliminated.