Shooting
Elavenil Valarivan strikes gold at ISSF World Cup
Elavenil Valarivan won the women's 10m air rifle event. This is the first medal won by an Indian at the 2023 ISSF World Cup in Rio.
Elavenil Valarivan in action.
Olympian Elavenil Valarivan upped her game when it mattered and won the women's 10m air rifle event at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup Rifle/Pistol competition in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday night.
Elavenil had won her maiden senior World Cup gold too in Rio de Janeiro, in August 2019.
Elavenil never scored below 10.1 throughout the series of 24 shots, and was perfection personified in the strong eight-woman final field.
The 24-year-old from Cuddalore finished with a score of 252.2 to outgun France's 20-year-old sensation Oceanne Muller, who won silver with 251.9. China's Zhang Jiale bagged the bronze.
She had qualified for the final in the eighth and last spot with a score of 630.5.
Muller had topped with 633.7. Two Chinese shooters Zhang Jiale and Zhang Yu (Olympian) and reigning European champion Jeanette Hegg Duestad of Norway were also among the finalists.
A 16-member Indian team is taking part in the Rio World Cup in as many as seven Olympic events. Italy lead the medal standings with two gold while India are joint third with Armenia.
(With PTI inputs)
