Russia, Belarus shooters banned from competing in ISSF events

CHENNAI: Shooters from Russia and Belarus won't be allowed to compete in ISSF events, a move that was made by the world body in the wake of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crises.

"Following the respective decision of the IOC Executive Board and a meeting with the IOC President,  the ISSF decided that athletes from the Russian Federation and Belarus will not be allowed to take part in ISSF Championships," the ISSF said in a statement on Tuesday.

"This decision entered into force at 16.00 CET (8:30 pm) on March 1, 2022, and is valid until upon further notice," the statement added.

A shooting event is currently undergoing in Cairo, Egypt with as many as 40 entries (10 Belarus, 30 Russia) from the aforementioned two European nations.

Shooters from those nations had competed until Tuesday with two from Russia winning a silver (Monday) and bronze (Tuesday).

The IOC had earlier urged all sporting bodies to exclude athletes from Russia and Belarus from international competitions.

European Championships

Last week, ISSF president Vladimir Lisin, co-incidentally a billionaire from Russia, had voiced his concerns on the ongoing crisis and suggested that they'll be shifting the European Championships (originally scheduled to be held in Moscow from mid-August) to elsewhere. That incidentally is important as Olympic quotas will be on offer.

"I'm strongly concerned about the current situation. I do understand that not all athletes will be able to come to the European Championship 25/50m/RT/Shotgun. I am deeply sorry! The ISSF Headquarters and the ESC Presidium don't have any right to make competitions unequal and to limit athletes' chances to win a quota for Olympic Games in Paris 2024. I'm sure we will find a solution and will host the Championship in some other place," Lisin, who has been heading the ISSF since 2018, had posted on Facebook.

Gold for pistol women's team

The women's air pistol team comprising Esha Singh, Ruchita Vinerkar and Shri Nivetha clinched the top prize late on Wednesday. The trio beat Germany 16-6 in the gold medal match. Earlier, the air pistol men's team event — Saurabh Chaudhary,  Kedarling Balakrishna Uchaganve and Gaurav Rana — just missed out on a medal to finish fourth.

Meanwhile, the partnership of Aayushi Gupta and Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil had done well late on Tuesday to get past the first hurdle in the 10m air rifle mixed team event. In the final stage, the duo bowed out after finishing at the bottom in relay 1.

In the 10m air pistol mixed team event, Esha was partnering with Kedarling Balakrishna Uchaganve. The duo finished 19th in the qualification stage. Saurabh Chaudhary and Shri Nivetha finished 33rd.

In the air rifle women's team event, the trio of Rajshree Sancheti, Aayushi Gupta and Shreya Agrawal finished seventh.