The National Times - Niraj Kumar earns Los Angeles Olympic quota with 50m rifle bronze

DOHA: India's Niraj Kumar secured a quota place for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics after clinching bronze in the men's 50m rifle 3-positions event at the ISSF World Championships here on Wednesday. It was India's second Olympic quota at the championships, following Jaypal Malviya's silver in the men's 10m air pistol event a few days ago. Niraj shot 346.5 in the final and was in contention for silver before a costly 9.4 on his 34th shot pushed him down to third. Individual Neutral Athlete (AIN) Dmitrii Pimenov clinched gold with a world junior record score of 362.8, while Slovakia's Patrik Jany took silver.

Both also secured Olympic quota places. The other Indian in the final, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, finished fifth with 323.7. India also won bronze in the team event, with Niraj, Aishwary and Akhil Sheoran combining for 1,751 in the elimination round. They missed silver by a solitary point as Norway finished second with 1,752, while the Czech Republic took gold with 1,754. Niraj shot 582, Aishwary 587 and Akhil 582 to help India secure the team bronze. In the subsequent qualification round, Niraj produced an impressive 591 to top the standings, while Aishwary shot 586 to finish fourth and book his place in the final. The final proved a testing affair, particularly for Aishwary, a two-time Olympian and former World Championships silver medallist.

He made a strong start in the kneeling position, shooting 102.9 over 10 shots to be tied for the lead. However, a string of scores in the 9s during the prone series saw him lose ground.

His struggles continued in the standing position before he was eliminated in fifth place. Niraj, meanwhile, kept his composure and remained firmly in the medal hunt. The 26-year-old Navy shooter, who was part of India's silver-winning team at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya recently, looked set for silver alongside his Olympic quota until that costly 9.4 changed the standings. Jany struck a 10.4 to move ahead of him and claim second place. Pimenov, meanwhile, was in a class of his own, finishing well clear of the field to claim gold with a world junior record. Meanwhile, India's men's trap shooters are also in contention for a place in the final, with a chance to add to the country's medal tally and secure another Olympic quota on Thursday. Udaivir Singh and Vivaan Kapoor produced impressive performances on day two to sit seventh and eighth respectively, both with scores of 97 after four rounds of 25 shots each.

The top eight shooters after the final qualification round on Thursday will advance to the medal round. India are also leading the team standings with an aggregate of 285. Udiavir and Vivaan contributed 97 each, while Zorawar Sandhu shot 91.

One more round of 25 shots remains before the team medals are decided on Thursday.

F.Hammond--TNT