What’s the story?
Indian shooters Jitu Rai and Amanpreet Singh have struck riches at the 2017 ISSF World Cup by winning Gold and Silver, respectively, in the 50m Air Pistol shooting. One of India’s best shooters of all time, Jitu Rai proved his class and prowess with a stellar performance in both qualifying and final rounds of the event he loves the most. Amanpreet, on the other hand, gave a good account of himself by giving Jitu a close fight in the final.
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Rai had a rather average qualification round in which the best eight shooters would have made it to the final. He shot 93.8 in the first round to make it into the top 8 as compared to Amanpreet 98.9. However, Jitu came into his own in the final and shot seven 10s out of the final 10, to take home the gold by finishing with a score of 230.1 in total. Amanpreet, on the other hand, was quite consistent and almost bagged home the top prize but for Jitu’s exceptional abilities.
Top 3: 1. Jitu Rai (India) – 230.1; 2. Amanpreet Singh (India) – 226.9; 3. Vahid Golkhandan (Iran) - 208.0
In case you didn’t know...
The 2017 ISSF World Cup is going on in India's national capital and the hosts have done pretty decently in the last few days, grabbing multiple medals. Jitu Rai, who did not have a great 2016 Rio Olympics, has bounced back strongly and he has delivered in style today. A slow starter, Jitu has this uncanny knack of always producing world class shots at will to win medals. Amanpreet Singh also showed great prowess in the final and took full advantage of shooting in home conditions.
The heart of the matter
India is a conveyor belt of talent when it comes to shooting and its performance in the 2017 ISSF World Cup has shown the same. Pooja Ghatkar had earlier won the bronze medal in the 10m Air Rifle event to kick off proceedings for India. Medals from Jitu Rai and Amanpreet are exactly what the doctor ordered.
Sportskeeda’s Take
Shooting, along with wrestling and badminton, is perhaps India’s best chance of winning medals at the world championships and mainly Olympics. Furthermore, shooters like Jitu Rai and Pooja Ghatkar are shining examples of the sport’s future in the country and India would have a great chance of winning multiple medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with these at the helm.
