India’s shooting campaign at the Paris Olympics 2024 received a boost as the duo of Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh secured the third spot in the 10m air pistol mixed team qualification. With a total score of 580-20x points, Manu and Sarabjot have advanced to the bronze medal match, where they will face South Korea, who finished with 579-18x points. The gold medal match will feature Turkiye (582-18x) and Serbia (581-24x). Unfortunately, the other Indian team, consisting of Rhythm Sangwan and Arjun Singh Cheema, finished in the 10th spot, missing out on a medal match.
During the qualification round, each team member shot 30 shots within 30 minutes, with each series comprising 10 shots per player. Manu-Sarabjot started strong with 193 points in their first series, followed by 195 points in the second, and 192 points in the third, finishing with a combined score of 580-20x. Meanwhile, Rhythm-Cheema scored 194, 192, and 190 points in their respective series, ending with a total of 576-14x points. Despite a solid performance, Rhythm and Cheema fell short of the top four, finishing in the 10th position.
Notably, Manu Bhaker had already made headlines by winning a bronze medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event on Sunday, marking the first Olympic shooting medal for an Indian woman. Her score of 221.7 earned her the bronze, while South Korea’s Ye Jin won gold with a record-breaking 243.2 points, and her compatriot Kim Yeji took silver with 241.3 points. Manu’s achievement comes as a significant redemption after her pistol malfunction at the Tokyo Olympics, making her the first Indian woman in 20 years to reach an Olympic shooting final since Suma Shirur in 2004.
