New Delhi [India], December 30 (HBTV): Asian Championship gold medallist Neeru Dhanda produced a composed performance to clinch the women’s trap gold medal at the 68th National Shooting Championship Competitions (Shotgun) at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range.
Neeru topped the final with 41 hits, fending off a strong challenge from Delhi’s Kirti Gupta, who secured the silver medal with 40 hits. Neeru’s Madhya Pradesh teammate Pragati Dubey completed the podium, winning the bronze with 32 hits, according to a press release from the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI).
In the qualification round, Pragati Dubey finished first with a score of 117, followed by Neeru Dhanda with 114 and Rajeshwari Kumari with 113. Addya Katyal qualified fourth with 112, while Preeti Rajak and Kirti Gupta both shot 111, with their final positions decided through shoot-offs. In the final, Addya Katyal finished fourth with 27 hits, Preeti Rajak placed fifth with 21, and Punjab’s Olympian Rajeshwari Kumari finished sixth with 17 hits.
In the junior men’s trap final, Aryavansh Tyagi delivered a strong finish to win the gold medal with 42 hits. Punjab’s Keshav Chauhan claimed silver with 37, while Uttar Pradesh’s Zuhair Khan took the bronze with 30.
Zuhair Khan had earlier dominated the qualification round with a score of 120, ahead of Aryan Singh’s 118. Aryavansh Tyagi and Arjun both shot 115, with Aryavansh advancing to the final on the basis of a shoot-off. Keshav Chauhan (113) and Manitwa Singh Rawat (112) also qualified for the final. In the medal round, Manitwa Singh Rawat finished fourth with 27 hits, while Arjun of Haryana placed sixth with 14.
In the team events, Madhya Pradesh won the women’s trap team gold with a combined total of 339, achieved by Pragati Dubey, Neeru Dhanda and Manisha Keer. Delhi secured silver with 333 through Addya Katyal, Kirti Gupta and Bhavya Tripathi, while Punjab claimed bronze with 319, contributed by Rajeshwari Kumari, Pukhraj Kaur Chahal and Krishika Joshi.
Haryana won the junior men’s trap team gold with an aggregate score of 336, courtesy of Arjun, Lakshya Atree and Prikshit Arya. Gujarat finished second with 327, while Rajasthan secured the bronze with 326.
In the junior women’s trap team event, Delhi claimed gold as Addya Katyal, Bhavya Tripathi and Ananya Yaduvanshi combined for a total of 323. Tamil Nadu finished second with 295, while Rajasthan took the bronze with 274.
In the trap master women category, Snehlata Singh Rajawat of Rajasthan won the gold medal, Beena Anand Patel of Gujarat secured silver, and Rajshree Rawat of Uttarakhand claimed bronze. (ANI)