NEW DELHI: India made a strong start at the ISSF World Cup in Lima, securing three medals on day one with Suruchi Singh and double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker clinching gold and silver respectively in Women’s 10m Air Pistol, while Saurabh Chaudhary won bronze in Men’s 10m Air Pistol.Eighteen-year-old Suruchi Singh secured her second consecutive World Cup gold with a final score of 243.6, edging past Manu Bhaker by 1.3 points. Bhaker scored 242.3 for silver, and China’s Yao Qianxun took bronze.
Singh, who recently dominated the Nationals and won gold at the National Games, qualified second with a score of 582. Bhaker qualified fourth with 578, while Sainyam missed the final, finishing 11th with 571.
Which aspect of Suruchi Singh’s performance do you find most commendable?
Mental focus and confidenceConsistency in Winning
“I was not stressed, and I don’t care who’s competing with me, as my competition is with myself. I have to shoot my best,” said Singh, who moved from third place to lead during the elimination phase.
Bhaker, making her return to the podium since the Paris Olympics, expressed satisfaction with her performance and praised Singh’s achievement.
“It makes me really happy to see young Indian shooters coming up and doing well at the international level,” said Bhaker. “Suruchi has done exceptionally well both in Buenos Aires and now in Lima and I hope this continues for a long time. At the same time, I hope to keep the pace up with the youngsters.”
In the women’s category, Surbhi Rao and Simranpreet Kaur Brar competed under Ranking Points Only (RPO), scoring 577 and 576 respectively, but did not advance to the final.
Saurabh Chaudhary’s bronze in Men’s 10m Air Pistol marked his first individual ISSF medal in two years. He scored 219.1 in a close contest with his nephew Varun Tomar, who finished fourth with 198.1.
China’s Hu Kai claimed gold in the men’s event with 246.4, while Brazil’s Felipe Almeida Wu secured silver with 241.0.
In the men’s qualification round, Aakash Bhardwaj scored 583 but couldn’t advance due to RPO status. Ravinder Singh and Amit Sharma scored 574 and 573, respectively, with Singh just missing the final.
Suruchi Singh, double Olympic medallist, Manu Bhaker, ISSF World Cup, Saurabh Chaudhary,
