Indian shooting celebrated a magnificent double podium finish at the prestigious ISSF World Cup Final in Doha, with Simranpreet Kaur Brar striking gold and Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar earning a brilliant silver on his debut at the season-ending event.
Brar's Golden Triumph and Record-Equalling Feat
The 21-year-old Simranpreet Kaur Brar secured the top honour in the women's 25m pistol event, marking the greatest achievement of her young career. She displayed remarkable composure in the final, scoring 41 points to match the World junior record. Her journey to the top was not without drama, as she had a slow start, missing three targets in her first five shots and slipping to last place.
However, the shooter, whose father resigned from his government job to support her ambitions, mounted a spectacular comeback. She fired three consecutive perfect sets of 5 points to surge ahead of the competition. This stellar performance helped her overtake China's reigning 10m air pistol world champion, Yao Qianxun, who finished second with 36 points. Germany's former world champion Doreen Vennekamp claimed the bronze medal.
In the qualification round, both Simranpreet and her compatriot Esha Singh had scored 585 points to secure their spots in the eight-shooter final. While Simranpreet went on to glory, Esha Singh finished seventh. Notably, double Olympic bronze medalist Manu Bhaker narrowly missed the final, placing ninth in qualification with a score of 581.
Aishwary's Silver Lining on Debut
In the men's 50m rifle 3-positions event, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar showcased his class by bagging a silver medal in his first appearance at the World Cup Final. The double Olympian and former junior world champion finished behind Czechia's Jiri Privratsky, who scored 414.2 in the final under the new ISSF format. Olympic champion Liu Yukun of China took the bronze.
Aishwary, who is also the current Asian champion and recently won silver at the World Championship, demonstrated his technical prowess throughout the demanding competition. He qualified in second place with a score of 595, behind China's Tian Jiaming, who set a new world record with an astounding 598.
The final was a tense affair featuring top shooters like Norway's Athlete of the Year Jon-Hermann Hegg and Hungarian champion Istvan Peni. Aishwary began in fourth place after the kneeling position but climbed to second with strong series in the prone position. He engaged in a nail-biting duel with Privratsky, reducing the lead to just 0.3 points before the final two shots. Despite his best efforts, Privratsky's final shots of 10.3 and 10.6 sealed the gold, his third ISSF victory this year.
Completing the Medal Collection and Team Performance
This silver medal was significant for Aishwary as it completed his collection of medals across world and continental championships, capping off a successful year after a challenging first half. His performance contributed to India's fourth medal at the Doha event.
In other results, Indian shooter Sift Kaur Samra scored 584 in the women's 3P event, finishing tenth and missing the final qualification cut. The performances of Simranpreet and Aishwary have once again highlighted the depth of talent in Indian shooting, providing a massive boost as the nation builds towards future Olympic campaigns.
