India’s Men’s 10m Air Rifle Team smashed the World Record to earn the country’s first gold medal at the upcoming Asian Games 2023.
The team of Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil, Divyansh Singh Panwar, and Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar not only won India’s first Gold medal of the games, but also broke the world record . Trio shot a total of 1893.7 points in the individual qualification round, beating China’s previous world record set at the Baku World Championship. South Korea finished second with 1890.1 points, and China finished third with 1888.2 points.
Rudrankksh led the team with 631.6 points after finishing third in qualification. For India, Aishwary scored 631.6 points, while Divyansh scored 629.6 points.
India not only won gold in the team event, but all three shooters also advanced to the top-8 in the 10m Air Rifle event. However, according to Asian Games rules, only two players from each country can proceed to the final, which is why Rudrankksh and Aishwary advanced and Divyansh did not.
First 🥇 for #IndiaAtAG22
Gold Medal & a new World Record set by our #TeamIndia trio @DivyanshSinghP7, @RudrankkshP & Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar in the 10m Air Rifle Men’s Team Event. Best wishes to them for the individual finals starting shortly!#Cheer4india #WeAreTeamIndia pic.twitter.com/jEhJyEoiDY
— Team India (@WeAreTeamIndia) September 25, 2023
The Indian shooters made a little mistake in the first set, with Rudrankksh and Divyansh scoring 104.8 each, while Aishwary earned 104.1. They rapidly recovered their footing, progressively raising their scores in the following series. The squad had broken the world record by the sixth series, accumulating an amazing 1893.7 points.
This triumph was especially notable because it was India’s first gold medal at the Asian Games 2023. It set the tone for India’s performance in the games, with the country finishing the first official day with five medals – three silver and two bronze.
The women’s 10m air rifle team, which included Ashi Chouksey, Mehuli Ghosh, and Ramita Jindal, also created history by bringing India its first medal to Hangzhou 2023, a silver in shooting.