Manu Bhaker and Anmol Jain celebrate after winning the gold in mixed 10m air pistol event
The duo of Manu Bhaker and Anmol Jain secured India's seventh gold medal in the ISSF junior World Cup by winning the mixed 10m air pistol event with a qualification world record in Sydney on Tuesday. Ganemat Sekhon bagged an individual bronze medal in the junior women's skeet, shooting a 36 in the final. Bhaker and Anmol dominated the event from the very start and enter the final with the highest qualification score and a new junior qualification world record.
They finished with a 5.6 advantage over their closest rivals, China's Liu Jinyao and Li Xue.
The two Indian youngsters dominated the final match since its very first series, progressively building a gap between them and their closest rivals. They eventually finished with 478.9 points, just 1.8 points away from the current world record.
Previously, Anmol and Bhaker also set a new Junior Qualification World Record with 770 points.
The silver and bronze medals were both awarded to China, as Liu Jinyao (20) and Li Xue (18) finished in the second position with 473.3 points, while Wang Zhehao (19) and Xiao Jiaruixuan (15) took third place with 410.7.
A second Indian team, comprising 18-year-old Gaurav Rana and 19-year-old Mahima Turhi Agrawal, finished at the feet of the podium, leaving the final at the 38th-shot mark with 370.2 points and fourth position.
Finishing 11.2 points away from the fifth place because of a dry-fire shot and also suffering a 1.0-point reduction Australia's Hans Ben Hummer (18) and Sascha Kroopin (16) took the sixth place with a final score of 320.9.
Overall, India occupied the second placed with 17 medals, including seven gold. China lead the tally with 21 podium finishes, including eight gold medals.
(With PTI Inputs)
