Maharashtra’s Sakshi Sunil Padekar and Railways’ Shahu Tushar Mane bettered national records during the final and qualification rounds of the 10m air rifle women and men events at the National Selection Trials 1 & 2.
Sakshi shot 254.3 in T2 final round while Mane scored 637.1 in the qualification at the Karni Singh Shooting Range on Friday. According to NRAI press release, these scores will not be counted as an official national record.
After struggling on Thursday, Olympian Arjun Babuta won T2 final of 10m air rifle men, while Sakshi claimed the women’s 10m air rifle final. Olympian Rahi Sarnobat claimed the T2 final of 25m Pistol Women.
Olympian Arjun Babuta claimed top honours in a closely contested 10m air rifle men final, finishing with 253.4. Babuta, who had qualified second with 632.4, elevated his performance in the final to edge Maharashtra’s Parth Rakesh Mane by the narrowest of margins. Parth finished just 0.1 points behind on 253.3. Kiran Ankush Jadav was third.
Sakshi dominates 10m air rifle
Maharashtra’s Sakshi Sunil Padekar produced a commanding performance in the 10m Air Rifle Women Trial 2, staying firmly in control from qualification through to the final. Padekar topped the qualification round with an impressive 634.4 before backing it up with a superb 254.3 in the final, better than the existing national record score, set by Elavenil Valarivan in the Asian Shooting Championship last year, to seal first place in emphatic fashion.
Kerala’s Vidarsa K Vinod shot 252.0 in the final to finish second, while World Championship bronze medallist Elavenil Valarivan, who was second in qualification with 633.4, claimed third place with a final score of 231.4. Uttar Pradesh’s Khyati Chaudhary narrowly missed out on the podium, finishing fourth with 209.7, while Delhi’s Rajshree Anilkumar Sancheti ended the final in fifth place with 188.6.
Maharashtra’s Arya Rajesh Borse finished sixth with 167.5, while Trial 1 winner Tilottama Sen placed seventh with 145.3. West Bengal’s Ismita Bhowal did not start the final despite qualifying sixth with a score of 631.6.
Rahi Sarnobat wins gold
Former Asian Games and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Rahi Sarnobat finished on top to claim gold in the 25m Pistol Women Trial 2 final, accumulating 43 hits in a dominant display. Haryana’s Vibhuti Bhatia once again impressed to secure second place with 35 hits. Paris Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker was third with 31 hits.