Asian Championship: Viviaan Kapoor, Esha Singh shine for India

Indian juniors collect 10 medals, including five gold, to take India’s tally to 23.

File Photo: Esha Singh won the gold medal in the 10m air pistol, among junior women.

Vivaan Kapoor and Esha Singh came up with dominant performances in winning the junior men’s trap and junior women’s air pistol gold medals in the Asian Shooting Championship in Doha, Qatar, on Thursday.

On a day when Chinki Yadav kept herself in the race for the Olympic quota in women’s 25-metre sports pistol event with a half-way score of 292, two points behind the leader, it was the juniors who swelled the collection for India with 10 medals, including five gold.

Top-class performance

Vivaan was top class as he won the gold by beating compatriot Bhowneesh Mendiratta 45-42 after having topped qualification with 120 out of 125. Along with Manavaditya Rathore, the Indian trio won the team gold with a score of 347, eight points better than China.

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Esha Singh, a prodigy in air pistol who had swept the women’s, junior and youth gold medals in the last National championship in Kerala as a 13-year-old, beat Jeong Hyo of Korea by 4.9 points for the gold. Along with Priya Raghav (bronze) and Yuvika Tomar, Esha also clinched the team gold for India.

Gold for Bhakti Khamkar

Bhakti Bhaskar Khamkar won the junior women’s rifle 3-position gold, but the team had to be content with the silver.

India has won 23 medals so far, with the juniors accounting for 18, apart from the Olympic quota in men’s air rifle through Deepak Kumar.

• Junior men
• 50m rifle 3-position: 1. Yu Hao (Chn) 459.5 (WRJ) 1166; 2. Niraj Kumar 455.7 (1166); 3. Sheng Lihao (Chn) 442.5 (1163); 6. Harshrajsinhji Gohil 406.9 (1158); 8. Nitish Kumar 395.7 (1156). MQS: Sartaj Singh Tiwana 1164.
• Team: 1. China 3495; 2. India 3480; 3. Korea 3451.
• Trap: 1. Vivaan Kapoor 45 (120); 2. Bhowneesh Mendiratta 42 (118); 3. Li Siwei (Chn) 33 (117); 8. Manavaditya Singh Rathore 109.
• Team: 1. India 347; 2. China 339; 3. Kuwait 311.
• Junior women
• 10m air pistol: 1. Esha Singh 242.2 (579); 2. Jeong Hyo (Kor) 237.3 (568); 3. Priya Raghav 217.6 (574); 7. Yuvika Tomar 133.7 (568).
• Team: 1. India 1721 (WRJ); 2. China 1702; 3. Chinese Taipei 1687.
• 50m rifle 3-position: 1. Bhakti Bhaskar Khamkar 453.1 (1159); 2. Yu Jianuan (Chn) 448.7 (1159); 3. Ma Yuting (Chn) 439.6 (1161); 7. Ayushi Podder 397.9 (1159); 11. Nischal 1142. MQS: Vanshika Shahi 1140.
• Team: 1. China 3477; 2. India 3460; 3. Korea 3457.
• Trap: 1. Zhang Ting (Chn) 41 (114); 2 Yang Haiyan (Chn) 38 (108); 3. Lea Korban (Lbn) 29 (110); 4. Manisha Keer 23 (107); 8. Preeti Rajak 102; 9. Aadya Tripathi 92.
• Team: 1. China 325; 2. India 301.