Indian shooter Shriyanka Sadangi secured India's 13th Paris Olympics quota by finishing fourth in the women's 50m rifle 3 positions (3P) event at the Asian Shooting Championship in Changwon, Korea on October 31. Shriyanka achieved a score of 440.5 but concluded her performance after the 43rd shot in the 45-shot final, evenly distributed across the kneeling, prone, and standing positions.
The competition was intense, with experienced Korean Lee Eunseo claiming the gold medal. Reigning air rifle world champion Han Jiayu of China secured the silver, while China also took the bronze through Xia Siyu.
Right from the qualification stage, all Indian women shooters in the 3P event showcased their excellence. Sift Kaur Samra, India's top-ranked shooter, played for ranking points only (RPO) and soared to the top of the field with a score of 592. Ashi Chouksey shot 591, securing the first qualifying spot among contenders and second place overall. Shriyanka and Ayushi Podder both made it to the top eight with scores of 588 and 587, respectively.
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Manini Kaushik, also participating in the RPO category, performed well, securing the 10th overall position with a tally of 586.
Shriyanka had a brilliant start in the final, kicking off with a score of 10.9. She continued her strong performance and was in the second position with 51.3 points after the first five kneeling shots. In contrast, Ayushi and Ashi were in the sixth and seventh positions.
As the competition progressed, Han and Lee established themselves as the top two contenders after 10 shots. Shriyanka had climbed to the fourth position, which she maintained until the end.
The prone position saw Ashi making her move up the rankings, while Shriyanka solidified her fourth spot. Unfortunately, Ayushi slipped to the seventh position. Lee had taken the lead from Han.
The fourth shot in the standing position was crucial for both Shriyanka and Ashi, with Shriyanka scoring 10.8 and Ashi scoring 8.7.
The first 10 shots in the standing position confirmed an Olympic quota for India when Korean Bae Sanghee and Ayushi finished in the eighth and seventh positions, respectively.
In the final five single-shots in the standing position, Shriyanka maintained her lead over Ashi with a score of 10.1 to Ashi's 9.8. Shriyanka ultimately secured the quota in her name. Arina Altukhova of Kazakhstan was the next to bow out, but she also earned one of the two available Paris quotas. With a 1.6-point lead over China's Xia, Shriyanka scored 10.0 in her 43rd shot, finishing a commendable fourth.
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