ISSF World Cup 2023 Rio de Janeiro: Top 3 medal hopes for India

The prestigious ISSF World Cup 2023 is scheduled to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Top-notch shooters from different parts of the world will be in action from Thursday, September 14. Indian shooters will also be in contention at the big event.

India's challenge will be spearheaded by Saurabh Chaudhary and Elavenil Valarivan. It is noteworthy that at the ISSF World Cup (rifle/pistol) in Baku held earlier this year, India won only four medals, including one gold, two silver, and one bronze. However, this time the Indian shooters will look to win more medals.

On that note, let us now have a look at the three strong medal prospects for India.

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#1 Saurabh Chaudhary

The Uttar Pradesh-born shooter will represent India in the men's 10m air pistol competition. He is vastly experienced and is undoubtedly one of the biggest medal hopes at the ISSF World Cup.

The 21-year-old claimed gold at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia. He also won gold at the 2022 World Cup in Cairo in the 10m air pistol. Despite not being in great form this year, the talented shooter has the potential to make a strong comeback by winning a medal at the World Cup.

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#2 Anjum Moudgil

Anjum Moudgil will be in contention in the women's 50m rifle 3-positions competition. She is a very experienced shooter, having competed at events like the Olympics, World Championships, and Asian Games among others.

The 29-year-old clinched a silver medal at the 2022 World Cup in Baku in the 50m rifle 3-positions. She also won bronze at the World Cup held in Changwon last year. Hence, she is definitely a contender for the podium in Rio as well.

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#3 Elavenil Valarivan

Elavenil Valarivan will compete in the women's 10m air rifle competition. She competed against the top shooters at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and will look to bring her experience into count.

The 24-year-old won gold at the 2019 World Cup in Rio de Janeiro in the 10m air rifle. Later, she also clinched gold at the 2019 World Cup Final 2019 in Putian. She is a remarkable shooter and is one of India's medal hopes at the 2023 ISSF World Cup.

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The final Indian squad for ISSF World Cup 2023

The Indian shooting squad (rifle/pistol) finalized for the 2023 ISSF World Cup has 16 members. Amongst them, some are experienced Olympians, while others are emerging talents. All of them have a nice opportunity to make a mark in Rio de Janeiro.

Indian men's squad

10m air pistol - Saurabh Chaudhary, Sagar Dangi, Shravan Kumar, Balakrishna Kedarling Uchaganve

10m air rifle - Sandeep Singh

50m rifle 3-positions - Goldi Gurjar, Chain Singh

25m rapid fire pistol - Neeraj Kumar, Gurpreet Singh

Women's squad

10m air rifle - Elavenil Valarivan, Narmada Nithin

50m rifle 3-positions - Anjum Moudgil, Nischal, Ayushi Podder

25m pistol - Rahi Sarnobat, Chinki Yadav