ISSF World Cup: India Finish Fifth As Meghana Sajjanar Bags Maiden WC Medal

The Indian contingent at the ISSF World Cup in Ningbo, China, managed a fifth-place finish as Meghana Sajjanar added a bronze medal to the nation’s tally on Sunday in the women’s 10m air rifle.

Sajjanar, who picked up the bronze medal in the event, registered a score of 230 to finish behind China’s Peng Xinlu and Norwegian Jeanette Hegg Duestad.

China led the standings with three gold medals, while Norway followed with two golds out of the ten available.

On Saturday, Esha Singh secured India’s first gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event. Early on Sunday morning, Meghana scored a solid 632.7 in the second qualification round, securing the seventh spot, with Peng leading with an impressive 637.4.

In the 24-shot final, the Chinese competitor started with a perfect 10.9, while Meghana was at the bottom of the eight-woman field after the first series of five shots. A strong second series of 52.3 moved her up to sixth place. Over the next 10 shots, the experienced Indian shooter consistently scored no less than 10.2, including a crucial 10.9 on her 12th shot, ensuring her first medal at this level.

With individual neutral athlete Mariia Vasileva just 0.3 points behind before the 19th shot, Meghana still had some work to do. However, two 10.4s secured her position, dashing any hopes Mariia might have had.

India also reached another final on the same day, their fourth overall in Ningbo, as Kiran Ankush Jadhav scored 590 in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification round, claiming the fourth spot. Unfortunately, a poor start in both the kneeling and prone positions resulted in him finishing eighth with a score of 406.7 after 40 shots.

Among other Indian competitors, Paris bronze medalist Swapnil Kusale scored a steady 587 to finish 21st overall and 19th among medal contenders, while Babu Singh Panwar scored 583, placing him further back.

In the women’s air rifle event, Olympian Ramita Jindal scored 629.8 to finish 22nd overall and 16th among contenders, with Kashika Pradhan scoring 626.6.

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