The average age of Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil, and Divyansh Singh Panwar is a shade over 21. Tomar and Panwar have taken part in the Olympics while Patil, the least experienced, already has a World Championships crown.
The trio, which won the 10m air rifle team gold on Monday with a world record score at the Fuyang Yinhu Sports Centre, represents the present and future of Indian rifle shooting. And Tomar going on to win the individual bronze didn't really come as a surprise.
Tomar pipped Patil in a oneshot shoot-off in the final to seal third spot. Panwar, the most experienced among the three, couldn't shoot in the final despite qualifying among the top eight because Games rules allow only a maximum of two shooters SHAM SRIVA HT from one country.
In fact, the 10m is Tomar's second event 50m 3 position is his pet event. Yet, the success wasn't a fluke. He competed in the 50m event at the Tokyo Olympics, but national coach Suma Shirur had intensified his 10m training since January.
"Look, 10m is a precision event which helps shooters in the 50m range. While the highest scoring shot in 10m is 10.9, the best in 50m is still 10. So, if you are good in 10m, you will automatically improve in the longer range. We stepped up his 10m training keeping the World Championships and Asian Games in mind," Shirur said.
"All three making the final shows our shooting strength, they are all world class," she said. The final saw Chinese favourite Sheng Lihao break the world record scoring 253.3 points. Such I was the level of the final that South Korean silver medallist Park Hajun Park (251.3) also bettered the Games record (249.1).
Patil and Tomar were bunched in the middle of the field throughout the final. Patil's first shot was a solid 10.6 and Tomar's 10.4. After the first five shots, Park led Sheng with Tomar third and Patil fourth. Tomar stayed there after 10 shots but Patil slipped to fifth.
This story is from the September 26, 2023 edition of Hindustan Times.
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This story is from the September 26, 2023 edition of Hindustan Times.
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