Indian shooter Swapnil Kusale has secured a spot in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions final at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Kusale finished seventh in the qualifying round held at the National Shooting Center in Châteauroux on Wednesday, earning a place among the top eight shooters who will compete in the final.
Kusale achieved a score of 598, including 38 inner 10s (Xs), with his breakdown being 198 in the kneeling position, 197 in prone, and 195 in standing. In contrast, Asian Games silver medallist Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, who scored 589-33X (197 kneeling, 199 prone, 193 standing), finished 11th and did not advance.
China’s Yukun Liu, a joint world record holder, led the qualifying round with a score of 594-38X, followed by Norway’s Jon-Hermann Hegg with 593-36X, and Ukraine’s Serhiy Kulish, the Rio 2016 silver medallist, who scored 592-39X.
The 50m rifle 3 positions final is scheduled for Thursday. Historically, India has not won an Olympic medal in this event.
In trap shooting, Indian competitors Shreyasi Singh and Rajeshwari Kumari fell short of reaching the women’s final. Singh and Kumari both scored 113 and finished 22nd and 23rd, respectively. This result concludes India’s trap shooting campaign at Paris 2024, with Prithviraj Tondaiman also missing out in the men’s trap qualification round.
Looking ahead, Indian shooters Manu Bhaker and Esha Singh will compete in the women’s 25m pistol event on Friday. Additionally, India’s campaign in the shotgun skeet events will commence the same day.
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