Sangram bags double trap silver; Amanpreet bronze
NEW DELHI: India’s Sangram Dahiya won silver in men’s double trap and Amanpreet Singh bronze in 50m free pistol to give the hosts their first individual medals in the ISSF World Cup Final at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range here on Friday.
China’s Hu Binyuan won the double trap gold with a world record of 79/80.
Dahiya shot 76/80 to clinch the second spot while Italy’s Davide Gasparini took bronze despite managing just 56. India’s Ankur Mittal, the world No 1, finished fourth.
“It was tough match. The field was very strong. So missing a single target meant you either make or break. But luckily, it was a good day for me as I didn’t miss too many,’’ Dahiya told HT. Since double trap has been scrapped from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, in future Dahiya wants to focus either on trap or skeet. “After next year’s Asian Games, will plan out things,’’ he added.
Amanpreet’s third spot in the 50m free pistol gave India their first individual medal. He once again showed his temperament by withstanding pressure despite an uneven day through the qualification and final rounds.
However, his better-known compatriot, Jitu Rai, failed to impress and was the first shooter to be eliminated in the final. Damir Mikec of Serbia won the gold and Oleh Omlechuck of Ukraine took silver.
Amanpreet struggled through the competition, but held on to stay in medal contention. He was lucky to qualify for the final even with a modest score of 541 out of a possible 600 points as there were only seven shooters in fray.