SHYMKENT (KAZAKHSTAN): India’s shooters kicked off their campaign at the Asian Championships (rifle/pistol/shotgun) with the men’s 10m air pistol team claiming silver, while Faridabad’s Anmol Jain narrowly missed out on an individual medal, finishing sixth on Monday.
The men’s team, comprising Anmol (580), Aditya Malra (579), and Asian Games gold medallist Saurabh Chaudhary (576), posted a combined score of 1,735, finishing behind China, who won gold with 1,744 points. Iran secured bronze with 1,733 points.
In the individual men’s 10m air pistol event, Anmol, who entered the final in seventh place after scoring 580 in the qualification round, ended sixth in the medal round with 155.1 points. China’s Hu Kai clinched gold with 241.6, while South Korea’s Hong Suhyeon and Iran’s Amir Joharikhou won silver (239.0) and bronze (216.8), respectively.
Aditya Malra (579) and Saurabh Chaudhary (576) finished 13th and 21st in the qualification round and did not advance to the final.
Notably, 20-year-old Amit Sharma, who debuted internationally as a junior in 2023, topped the 48-strong qualification field with an impressive 588. However, competing in the ‘Ranking Points Only’ (RPO) category, he was ineligible for the medal round. Another Indian RPO shooter, Varun Tomar, shot 584 to finish fourth in qualifications.
In the junior men’s 10m air pistol event, Kapil claimed gold with 243.0 points, having qualified fourth with a score of 579. Fellow Indian Gavin Antony also made the final and secured bronze with 220.7 points. The junior team—Gavin (582), Kapil, and Vijay Tomar (562)—totaled 1,723 points to win silver, finishing behind South Korea, who scored 1,734.
India has sent its largest-ever contingent of 182 shooters across senior, junior, and youth categories. Medals are on offer in 58 events: 46 individual and 12 mixed team competitions.
In the previous edition in Changwon, the senior team finished third with six gold, eight silver, and five bronze medals, behind China (14 gold, total 33) and host South Korea (nine gold, total 24). Overall, India had won 59 medals at Changwon (21 gold, 22 silver, 16 bronze).
