Thursday, May 7, 2026
ADVT 
Sports

Haryana Girl Manu Bhaker Strikes 2nd Gold At Shooting World Cup

Darpan News Desk IANS, 06 Mar, 2018 12:56 PM
    The sensational Manu Bhaker, all of 16, shot her way to a second successive gold medal in a mixed team event as India consolidated their position at the top in the ISSF World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico.
     
     
    Partnering Om Prakash Mitharval, the Indian teenager clinched the 10m air pistol mixed team title, a day after she won the women's 10m air pistol individual gold on what is turning out to be a memorable senior World Cup debut.
     
     
    The 11th standard student could be the youngest ever to win senior World Cup gold medals for India though the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) could not confirm.
     
     
    Also, the duo of Deepak Kumar and Mehuli Ghosh won the country its sixth medal of the competition - a bronze in the 10m air rifle mixed team event.
    Deepak and Mehuli, competing as India 2, shot 435.1 in the five-team final, finishing behind the Romanian pair of Alin Moldoveanu and Laura-Georgeta Coman who shot 498.4 for silver.
     
     
    China's Xu Hong and Chen Keduo won Gold in a world record score of 502.0.
     
     
    But it was Bhaker, the girl from Jhajjar, Haryana, who stunned the shooting world world with a second successive gold in as many days.
     
     
    For someone who took to shooting just a little over two years ago, winning two gold medals in a global event of this magnitude would easily qualify as some achievement.
     
     
    Shooting happened to her by chance after a brush with contact sports (boxing, martial arts) and Bhaker has already stamped her class in the tournaments she competed in.
     
     
    Asked about her penchant for winning medals with record-breaking feats, the unassuming pistol shooter said, "It just happens. I don't think about them. At times I don't even know what the records are." 
     
     
    "I am grateful to all my coaches for their advice and the hours they have put in to hone my technique," Manu added.
     
     
    Last December, she won the 10m air pistol event, outclassing the highly-experienced Heena Sidhu at the 61st National Shooting Championship in Thiruvanthapuram where she broke Heena's long-standing national record.
     
     
    She won a staggering 15 medals, including nine gold, during the tournament.
     
     
    Bhaker's tryst with shooting began when her father took her to the range and asked her to try her hand at the sport. She fired a few shots that found the centre of the target and the rest is history.
     
     
    On the third day of competitions in the Mexican city, once again both Indian entries in the 10m air pistol mixed team event made it through to the medal rounds.
     
     
    Bhaker and Om Prakash, representing India 1, shot 770 in qualification to be placed second behind the German husband and wife pair of Christian and Sandra Reitz who shot 777 for a qualifications world record score.
     
     
    Mahima Agrawal and Shahzar Rizvi, representing India 2, shot 763 to be positioned fourth and made it to the five-team final round from among the 16 competing teams.
     
     
    In the final, there were three pairs in contention from the very beginning - India 1 represented by Bhaker and Om Prakash, team Reitz of Germany and the French pair of Celine Goberville and Florian Fouquet.
     
     
    After a sea-saw battle between the three, the Indian and the German pair pulled ahead of the French duo decisively after 38 shots, with the Germans ahead of the Indians.
     
     
     
    With the final six shots remaining the Germans were ahead of the Indians by 0.1, but Bhaker and Om Prakash finished strong to clinch the battle after 48 shots, almost a point ahead of the Germans.
     
     
    The final scores in favour of the Indians read 476.1 to 475.2.
     
     
    Mahima Agrawal and Shahzar Rizvi finished fourth with a score of 372.4 in the finals.
     
     
    In the women's trap, India's Seema Tomar was the best finisher, shooting 111 in qualifying to end in 15th spot.
     
     
    Shreyasi Singh shot 106 to finish 22nd while Shagun Chowdhary shot 101 to be placed 26th.
     
     
    Also at the end of the first day of the qualification round in men's trap, India's Kynan Chenai shot 49 out of 50 to lie in sixth place. Zoravar Singh Sandhu shot 46 to lie 28th while Manavjit Singh Sandhu shot 42 to be in 47th place.
     
     
    India's medal count stood at three gold and four bronze medals for a total of seven podium finishes.

    MORE Sports ARTICLES

    UAE gets 20 IPL matches, opener in Abu Dhabi

    UAE gets 20 IPL matches, opener in Abu Dhabi
    United Arab Emirates (UAE) will host the first 20 matches of the Indian Premier League (IPL) including the grand opener slated for April 16 between defending champions Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders at Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

    UAE gets 20 IPL matches, opener in Abu Dhabi

    Dhoni files Rs.100 crore defamation case against two TV channels

    Dhoni files Rs.100 crore defamation case against two TV channels
    The Madras High Court Tuesday restrained two media companies - Zee Media Corporation and News Nation Network - from publishing or broadcasting for two weeks any stories linking Indian cricket team skipper M.S. Dhoni with any betting or spot/match fixing incident.

    Dhoni files Rs.100 crore defamation case against two TV channels

    Amazing! Back to life after 1,500 years in ice

    Amazing! Back to life after 1,500 years in ice
    In an exciting new insight into the survival of life on earth, researchers have brought back moss to life that was frozen for 1,500 years in Antarctic ice.

    Amazing! Back to life after 1,500 years in ice

    World T20: India lose warm-up game against Sri Lanka

    World T20: India lose warm-up game against Sri Lanka
    Chasing a target of 154, India came close to kissing distance of a win, thanks to a cameo of Ravichandran Ashwin's 12-ball 19 but were bowled out for 148 runs in 20 overs. Curiously skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni didn't come out to bat due to an injury

    World T20: India lose warm-up game against Sri Lanka

    Russia joins US, Canada on sledge hockey podium

    Russia joins US, Canada on sledge hockey podium
    The United States became the first team to win back-to-back Winter Paralympics sledge hockey golds while silver medallists Russia confirmed their place among the sport's elite here.

    Russia joins US, Canada on sledge hockey podium

    Sangakkara to retire from ODIs after 2015 World Cup

    Sangakkara to retire from ODIs after 2015 World Cup
    A day after announcing his retirement from the shortest version of the game, Sri Lanka's former captain and batting stalwart Kumar Sangakkara Monday decided to end his ODI career with the 2015 ICC World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

    Sangakkara to retire from ODIs after 2015 World Cup