National Games 2025: Sift Kaur Samra wins gold in women's 50m 3P, Jonathan Anthony clinches men's 10m pistol event

Sift Kaur Samra of Punjab clinched the gold medal in the women's 50m rifle 3 positions event at the National Games 2025 on Monday (February 3). Anjum Moudgil of Punjab won the silver medal in the same event hosted at the Maharana Pratap Sports College in Dehradun while Surabhi Bharadwaj Rapole of Telangana clinched the bronze.

Sift finished with a tally of 461.2 points while Anjum Moudgil scored a total of 458.7 points in an event that featured India's top shooters in action.

Vidarsha Vinod of Kerala, who was ahead during the kneeling position, was unable to sustain her lead. Sift Kaur Samra, who represented India in the 50m rifle 3 positions event at the Olympic Games, described the win as a "comeback" after being unable to finish on the podium in Paris.

After failing to get past the qualification round at the Paris Games, Sift stressed that she kept training without a break after the Olympics as well. The 23-year-old, who discontinued her MBBS course to pursue shooting, said that she was also overjoyed at being able to share the podium with teammate Anjum Moudgil.

"In a way, this is like a comeback for me after the Olympics. I am happy that all my hard work paid off since I did not take a break (after the Games) and kept training. I am also pleased to share the podium with my teammate Anjum Moudgil," Sift stated after the win.

"In a final where the best shooters from the country were present, I am grateful that I came through having committed any major error," she added.

"It's the third time that Sift Kaur Samra and I are sharing the podium at the National Games" - Anjum Moudgil

Anjum Moudgil was all praise for Sift Kaur Samra - Source: Getty

Anjum Moudgil was equally delighted to have won a shooting medal for Punjab alongside Sift Kaur Samra. The 31-year-old was full of praise for both the shooting range and the manner in which the event was organized.

"It's the third time that Sift Kaur Samra and I are sharing the podium at the National Games. She is an accomplished athlete and we all know what she has achieved for the country as well. I did not start too well but I managed to calm myself and managed to finish on the podium," Anjum observed. "This was a really good shooting range and the event was organized extremely well."

Jonathan Anthony of Karnataka made a mark by winning gold in the 10m pistol event. The 15-year-old, who scored 240.7 points, asserted that he was proud to have won gold in an event comprising several seniors who have represented the country.

"I am really happy to have won the final. All the finalists have represented India in the past and are excellent shooters. As such, I feel really proud to have won the gold medal," he said.

Anthony had earlier edged Asian Games gold medalist and Olympian Saurabh Choudhary in the qualification round.