New Delhi: In a thrilling final at the 25m Women’s Pistol event of the Asian Rifle/Pistol Championship held at Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range, Manu Bhaker narrowly missed out on the gold, losing to Vietnam’s Thuy Trang Nguyen after two shoot-offs.
Esha Singh secured her second individual medal of the championship, winning bronze, while Naamya Kapoor clinched gold in the junior category after a tense shoot-off. Veteran shooter Anjali Bhagwat took bronze in the same event. With these victories, India’s medal tally at the championship rose to 60 medals, including 37 gold, 13 silver, and 10 bronze.
🇮🇳 एशियन राइफल/पिस्टल चैंपियनशिप 2026 में महिलाओं की 25 मीटर पिस्टल स्पर्धा में शानदार प्रदर्शन करते हुए मनु भाकर ने सिल्वर मेडल और ईशा सिंह ने कांस्य पदक अपने नाम किया। 🥉 👏🔥 #AsianShootingChampionship2026 #TeamIndia #ShootingSports #ManuBhaker #EshaSingh @IndiaSports… pic.twitter.com/LFBk9yWV7A
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In the senior finals, Esha Singh began strong with a perfect five in the first series, while Manu Bhaker and Nguyen scored four each. The medal positions shifted back and forth throughout the tightly contested rounds. Nguyen pulled ahead with a perfect sixth series, taking a two-point lead, but Manu Bhaker and Esha capitalized on Nguyen’s weaker seventh series to close the gap.
Esha Singh Takes Bronze, Manu Bhaker Loses Gold to Nguyen After Shoot-Off
Esha, leading with 30 points at the end of the eighth series, faltered in the ninth and had to settle for bronze. Manu Bhaker and Nguyen’s scores tied after the final series, pushing the competition into a shoot-off. In the first shoot-off, both shooters hit two shots each, but in the second, Manu Bhaker missed three shots, allowing Nguyen to claim gold. Rhythm Sangwan, the third Indian in the final, finished fourth.
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In the junior finals, Naamya Kapoor matched Indonesia’s Rihadatul Asyifa with 29 shots in the main rounds but held her nerve in the shoot-off, hitting three shots while Asyifa missed all, securing gold. Anjali Bhagwat added a bronze with 24 points, and Parisha Gupta, who had topped the qualifiers, ended fifth with 14 points.
India also won team gold medals in both the senior and junior categories, continuing its dominant performance at the championship.