Hangzhou Asian Games gold medalist Palak Gulia has secured the country’s 20th Olympic quota in shooting. Palak won a bronze medal in the 10m air pistol event at the final Olympic qualification event being played in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil).
Armenia’s Elmira Karapetyan won the gold and Thailand’s Kamonlak Sancha won the silver and Olympic quota. Palak and Samyam had entered the final round with 578 marks. Although Palak and Samyam both fell behind in the finals, both made comebacks later.
Hungary’s Veronika Major was in the lead at one point, but then fell behind, giving Palk the advantage. At the 19th shot, Palak took a .6 point lead in the majors and moved into third place. So Samyam had to settle for the fifth position. Palak missed the Major 10 target in the third and fourth place matches, forcing Palak to settle for a bronze medal.
Indian Shooting Contingent Looks Solid Ahead of the Paris Olympics
Palak Gulias terrific performances in Rio helped India seal its 20th Olympic Quota in shooting. There are some big names in the quartet that include Manu Bhaker, Esha Singh, Rhythm Sangwan, Divyansh Singh Panwar and Aishwary Pratap Singh.
The Olympic Quota winners are now set to compete in national trials against India’s best-ranked shooters. This will take place in four phases and the top three scores will be considered. India has always had some of the best names in shooting at the Olympics. However, they failed to win a medal during the last Olympics, despite having World Number One’s among them.
The shooters are expected to prove that they are the best in the country in these trials. There are just over three months left before the commencement, but these trials are expected to help the shooters get some competition practice and know where they are at in their preparations.
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