Manu on track for hat-trick of medals

Chateauroux (France): Sharpshooter Manu Bhaker maintained her chances of winning an unprecedented third medal in the 2024 Olympics as she has made it to the 25m Pistol women's final, her third medal round, in the Games here on Friday. The 22-year-old Manu scored 590-24x to rank second in the 60-shot qualification round. In the precision stage, she notched 294 while scoring 296 in the rapid part.

Another Indian Esha Singh, the Asian Games medallist in this event, meanwhile, was placed 18th after scoring 581-17x and missed the cut for the final. Only the top eight shooters make it to the medal round in shooting.

Hungary's Veronika Major topped the qualifications stage with 592-27x points, equalling the qualification Olympic record. The women’s 25m pistol final is scheduled to be held on Saturday at 13:00 IST.

In the qualification stage, Manu was placed third after the precision round with scores of 97, 98 and 99 for a total of 294. At this stage, Esha was placed 10th with scores of 95, 96 and 100 for a total of 291.

In the rapid round, Manu shot 100, 98 and 98 for a total of 296 and moved up to the second spot. Esha, on the other hand, could manage 97, 96 and 97 for a total of 290, and slipped to the 18th place.

If she wins a medal on Saturday, Manu would become the first Indian athlete to win three medals in individual events at the same edition of the Olympics.

The shooter from Haryana has already bagged two bronze medals in her second appearance in the Olympics -- the first in the women's 10m Air Pistol event and another bronze in the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team event at the Paris Games.

She could also become the most successful Indian shooter at the Olympic Games. It would also be an unprecedented Indian record if she won three medals in the same Olympics.

Anant Jeet placed 26th in skeet: Indian shotgun shooters' abysmal performance continued with skeet marksman Anant Jeet Singh Naruka placed at 26th position with a score of 68 after day 1 of qualification. The men's and women's trap shooters have already finished their assignments without making an impression. Naruka fired three rounds of 25 each, which fetched him 23, 22 and 23. Legendary Vincent Hancock of the USA had three perfect rounds of 25 each and was leading the 28-shooter field. Two more qualification rounds will take place on Saturday before the six finalists are short-listed.