Picture Credit: Twitter/@OfficialNRAI
Having already announced the 15-member shooting side that will represent India in Tokyo Olympics later this year, the players are putting up a stellar show at the ongoing European Shooting Championships in Croatia. The performances notably came during the Minimum Qualification Score (MQS) section of the events.
Strong show by India's Rifle and Pistol mixed team pairs
The World No. 1 and 2 rifle mixed team pairing of Elavenil Valarivan and Divyansh Singh Panwar were at their absolute best as they shot a combined score of 630.6 in the first qualifying round. They recorded the second highest score overall among the 51 pairs who were participating in the event and were only behind the Norwegian pair of Jaeanette Duestad and Henrik Larsen who registered an European record score of 632.0 in the event.
Talking about the 10m air pistol mixed team event, India's top pairing of Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary delivered once again. The duo shot a combined score of 580 (out of possible 600) and finished second among the 43 pairs.
India's impressive start to the tournament
While the results on Wednesday in team events were commendable, India also had a solid start in the single's categories on Monday. World Cup gold medalist Saurabh Chaudhary topped the chart as he shot a score of 589 in 10m air pistol event's MCQ. Meanwhile, Abhishek Verma finished fourth with a score of 579.
In the women's 10m air rifle event, Elavenil Valarivan also finished on top with a score of 630.4. While Apurvi Chandela finished fourth with 627.8, Anjum Moudgil was at seventh place with 624.7. These performances by the talented shooting contingent have certainly raised the hopes of Indian fans for a much-awaited medal in Summer Olympics this year.