Paris Olympics 2024: Manu Bhaker qualifies for 25m sports pistol final; will shooter bag 3rd Olympic medal?

Indian pistol shooter Manu Bhaker, aiming for a hat-trick of Olympic medals at the Paris Games 2024, came up with a superb performance in 25m sports pistol, to finish second in qualification and book a place in the final.

Paris Olympics 2024: Manu Bhaker qualifies for 25m sports pistol; will shooter bag her 3rd Olympics medal? snt

Sunita Iyer

First Published Aug 2, 2024, 6:02 PM IST | Last Updated Aug 2, 2024, 6:03 PM IST

Indian shooter Manu Bhaker is one step away from achieving a remarkable hat-trick of Olympic medals, following an impressive performance in her favored event, the 25m sports pistol at the Paris Olympics 2024. On Friday, at the Chateauroux shooting range, the 22-year-old secured a spot in the final by finishing second in the qualification round.

Already making history as the first Indian athlete to win two bronze medals in a single edition of the Olympics, Bhaker is well-positioned to further enhance her legacy. With her commanding qualification performance, she stands a strong chance of adding a third medal to her collection on Saturday.

Manu Bhaker demonstrated consistent dominance throughout the qualification phase of the 25m sports pistol event, maintaining a position among the top three in both the 'precision' and 'rapid' rounds. She accumulated a total score of 590, securing second place behind Hungary's Veronika Major, who matched the Olympic record with a score of 592.

Bhaker's performance has notably improved since reuniting with legendary former shooter-turned-coach Jaspal Rana. She has previously earned bronze medals in the 10m women's air pistol and the 10m air pistol mixed team event alongside Sarabjot Singh.

In the sports pistol qualification rounds, Bhaker showcased exceptional form, scoring 294 in the challenging 'precision' round with scores of 97, 98, and 99. Her prowess continued in the 'rapid round,' where she achieved a perfect score of 100, followed by two 98s, totaling 296.

India's emerging shooter and multiple Hangzhou Asian Games medallist, Esha Singh, fell short of qualifying for the final, finishing 18th out of 40 shooters with an aggregate score of 581 (291 in precision and 290 in rapid).

Following her second bronze medal win in the 10m air pistol mixed team event, Manu Bhaker had advised the nation not to be "disappointed" if she didn't secure additional medals. However, given her dominant performance, the shooter from Jhajjar is well-positioned to contend for a gold or silver.

Bhaker's impressive showing comes after a disappointing campaign at the Tokyo 2021 Games, where a pistol malfunction hindered her Olympic aspirations.

Manu Bhaker noted that the heartbreak of her previous Olympic experience made her value the medals she has won here even more.

As the second youngest Indian athlete to win an Olympic medal, following shuttler PV Sindhu, Manu expressed her admiration for ace javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and Sindhu, praising them for having "proved themselves."

India has secured all three shooting medals so far, with Manu earning two and Swapnil Kusale winning bronze in the 50m rifle three-positions on Thursday.

Legendary cricketer Rahul Dravid also praised Manu's performance as "incredible" following her second Olympic bronze medal.

"Manu's story is incredible after the disappointment of Tokyo Olympics, to come here and be able to get over that and compete and bronze is a phenomenal achievement," Dravid, the former India coach, had said during a panel discussion at India House in Paris.

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