First Medal Hope For India - Manu Bhaker Reaches 10m Air Pistol Final At Paris Olympics 2024

A supremely confident Manu Bhaker was at the top of her game as she entered the 10m women's air pistol final, salvaging the day for Indian shooting after an underwhelming start by her compatriots in the Olympic Games on Saturday. The 22-year-old Bhaker shot 580 to finish third in the qualifications in which Hungarian ace Veronika Major claimed the top spot with a score of 582. The other Indian representative, Rhythm Sangwan, ended 15th with a score of 573. The final will be held on Sunday. Reduced to tears following her forgettable outing in her Games debut in Tokyo three years ago, Bhaker is seeking to add an Olympic medal to her very excellent resume.

A prominent shooter, who has gained international recognition for his exploits in the sport form a very young age, Bhaker looked determined to keep the Tokyo memories behind and produced a fine qualification performance.

The Haryana shooter made a bright start with a total of 97 points to take the fourth spot at the end of Series 1.

Bhaker got a 97 in the second series too and remained in fourth as Sangwan slipped to 26th after a poor outing including an 8. But Bhaker was back in the top two after an excellent 98 in her third series.

Bhaker got an 8 in the fifth series, her first bad shot in an otherwise excellent qualification, but she still remained in the mix and eventually made the final.

Indians bow out in men's 10m air pistol

Earlier, Sarabjot Singh and Arjun Singh Cheema sparkled in patches but could not make the men's 10m air pistol final along with both the 10m air rifle mixed teams in a disappointing start for Indian shooters.

Sarabjot finished ninth with a total score of 577 in the qualifications while Arjun ended way behind at 18th with 574.

Germany's Robin