ISSF Junior WC: India sweep podium in 10 m air rifle women's event

New Delhi [India], September 29 (ANI): India produced a stunning display of dominance in the 10m Air Rifle Junior Women's event at the ISSF Junior World Cup New Delhi 2025 here on Monday at Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range, registering a clean sweep of the podium.

Ojasvi Thakur emerged as the champion with a score of 252.7, firing two brilliant 10.9s on her 8th and 16th shots to seal the gold medal. Teammate Hrudya Shri Kondur secured the silver with 250.2, while qualification leader Shambhavi S Kshirsagar completed the all-India podium with 229.4, as per a press release from the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI).

The Indian trio had already stamped their authority in qualification, finishing as the top three with Shambhavi leading on 632.0, Ojasvi following with 631.9, and Hrudya third on 629.8. Croatia's Anamarija Turk, who had qualified eighth, was the closest challenger but placed fourth in the final with 206.6.

The rest of the finalists included individual athletes Lidiia Vasileva (184.5), Varvara Kardakova (164.2), and Mariia Kruglova (142.8), as well as Slovakia's Kamila Novotna (122.1).

In the men's 10m Air Rifle Junior final, India's Himanshu, who had topped qualification with 633.7, kept his form intact to clinch gold with a superb 250.9. Individual Neutral Athlete Dmitrii Pimenov followed with 249.9 for silver, while India's Abhinav Shaw claimed bronze with 228.4.

Fellow Indian Naraen Pranav Vanitha Suresh finished fifth on 187.0. AIN athlete Kamil Nuriakhmetov placed fourth with 208.3, while his teammate Sergei Novoselov took sixth on 165.9. Croatia's Darko Tomasevic (144.8) and Oman's Khalid Mohammed Ali Khalaf Al Kalbani (123.5) rounded off the line-up.

The AIN country code stands for Athlètes Individuels Neutres, or Individual Neutral Athletes

The 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men Junior final produced a thrilling finish as individual athlete (AIN) Aleksandr Kovalev edged past India's Mukesh Nelavalli in a shoot-off to claim the gold medal. Both had ended tied on 27 hits before Kovalev prevailed 3-1 in the decider. Mukesh, who had qualified third with 571-20x, settled for silver.

India still managed a double podium as Suraj Sharma, the qualification leader with 577-15x, took bronze with 21 hits. Sameer finished fourth on 15 hits, while Great Britain's Toby Aberdeen (10) and AIN athlete Georgii Tarasov (7) closed the field.

In the Trap Junior qualification on Day 1, the competition remained tight. In the women's section, Kseniia Samofalova (AIN), India's Addya Katyal, and Italy's Sofia Gori shared the lead with 70 hits from 75 targets, while USA's Lucy Myers followed in fourth with 69. Four shooters, including India's Tanisska Senthil Kumar, were tied on 68.

In the junior men's event, Croatia's Toni Gudelj and Spain's Daniel Fernandez de Vicente led with 73 hits, while seven shooters followed on 72.

Qualification Day 2 for both Trap men and women will be held tomorrow, September 30, 2025, with 50 additional targets starting at 9 AM, ahead of the medal finals in the afternoon.

-Other Indians in action

10m Air Rifle Men Junior

Mohammed Vania - 627.1 (6th)

Piyush Sharma - 626.0 (7th)

10m Air Rifle Women Junior

Anvii Rathod - 628.3 (7th)

Isha Anil Taksale - 625.3 (10th)

25m RFP Men Junior Qualification - Stage 2

Abhinav Chaudalry - 569-21x (5th)

Jatin - 566-14x (6th)

Trap Men Junior Qualification - Day 1 (75 Targets)

Arya Vansh Tyagi - 71 (10th)

Vinay Pratap Singh Chandrawat - 70 (14th)

Udhav Singh Rathore - 70 (15th)

Arjun - 70 (16th)

Aman Chauhan - 62 (35th)

Trap Women Junior Qualification - Day 1 (75 Targets)

Addya Katyal - 70 (2nd)

Tanisska Senthil Kumar - 68 (8th)

Sabeera Haris - 67 (9th)

Shreshtha Sisodiya - 63 (17th)

Bhavya Tripathi - 58 (18th)

-Day 6 Schedule

Tuesday's schedule (September 30, 2025) will feature three medal events, beginning with the 10m Air Rifle Mixed Team Junior final at 11:00 AM IST, followed by the Trap Women Junior final at 2:30 PM and the Trap Men Junior final at 4:00 PM.

Qualification for the mixed team event begins at 9:30 AM, while the Trap shooters continue with Day 2 of qualification from 9:00 AM.

Pistol shooters will also be in action, with the 25m Pistol Precision stage for both junior men and women scheduled to start at 9:15 AM IST. (ANI)

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