SHOOTING: India shines with five wins and a world record at the ISSF Munich World Cup

India's 10 m Air Pistol world-record setter Chaudhary Saurabh (Photo: ISSF)

Among Olympic athletes, the sport with the oldest competitors is often shooting.

If that’s the case, get ready to hear about 17-year-old Chaudhary Saurabh from India for the next half-century or so!

He collected two gold medals during the highly-respected ISSF World Cup for pistols and rifles in Munich (GER), starting with the 10m Air Pistol. He not only won, defeating 2018 World Championships silver medalist Artem Chernousov (RUS) in the final, but upped his own world record in the event from 245.0 to 246.3. Chernousov was second with 243.8 points.

Saurabh then teamed with Manu Bhaker to win the Mixed 10 m Air Pistol event, the second of five victories for India during the week of events in Munich. It’s an encouraging sign for a country which has won a grand total of four Olympic medals in the sport.

Indian women shooters Rahi Sarnobat (25 m Pistol) and Apurvi Chandela (10 m Air Rifle) won their events and the Mixed 10 m Air Rifle final an all-Indian affair, with Anjum Moudgil and Divyansh Singh Panar routing Chandela and Deepak Kumar, 16-2.

China actually won the most medals on the 10-event program, with two golds, two silvers and five bronzes for a total of nine; India had six total (5-1-0) and no other country won more than two.

There was impressive shooting from 2018 World Champion Junmin Lee (CHN), who won the men’s 25 m Rapid-Fire Pistol and from 2016 Olympic Champion Anna Korakaki, who won the 10 m Air Pistol event. Summaries:

ISSF World Cup
Munich (GER) ~ 24-31 May 2019
(Full results here)

Men

10 m Air Pistol: 1. Chaudhary Saurabh (IND), 246.3 (World Record; old, 245.0, Saurabh, 2019); 2. Artem Chernousov (RUS), 243.8; 3. Wei Pang (CHN), 220.7.

25 m Rapid-Fire Pistol: 1. Junmin Lin (CHN), 3; 2. Clement Bessaguet (FRA), 30; 3. Juan Quiquampoix (FRA), 25.

10 m Air Rifle: 1. Filip Nepejchal (CZE), 250.8; 2. Petar Gorsa (CRO), 249.5; 3. Haoran Yang (CHN), 229.0.

50 m Rifle/3 Positions: 1. Zhonghao Zhao (CHN), 461.8; 2. Jonghyun Kim (KOR), 455.6; 3. Zicheng Hui (CHN), 445.7.

Women

10 m Air Pistol: 1. Anna Korakaki (GRE), 241.4; 2. Wei Qian (CHN), 239.6; 3. Minjung Kim (KOR), 220.8.

25 m Pistol: 1. Rahi Sarnobat (IND), 37; 2. Olena Kostevych (UKR), 36; 3. Antoaneta Boneva (BUL), 26.

10 m Air Rifle: 1. Apurvi Chandela (IND), 251.0; 2. Luyao Yang (CHN), 250.8; 3. Hong Xu (CHN), 229.4.

50 m Rifle/3 Positions: 1. Yulia Zykova (RUS), 461.6; 2. Seonaid McIntosh (GBR), 461.4; 3. Katrine Lund (NOR), 450.2.

Mixed

10 m Air Pistol/ Final: 1. Manu Bhaker/Chaudhary Saurabh (IND) d. Olena Kostevych/Oleh Omelchuk (UKR), 17-9. Third: Qian Wang/Meng Yi Wang (CHN) d. Natalia Krol/Szymon Wojtyna (POL), 16-14.

10 m Air Rifle/ Final: 1. Anjum Moudgil/Divyansh Singh Panar (IND) d. Apurvi Chandela/Deepak Kumar (IND), 16-2. Third: Maria Martynova/Illia Charheika (BLR) d. Olivia Hofmann/Alexander Schmirl (AUT), 16-14.