Prachi Gaikwad Shines with Gold at ISSF Junior World Cup in Cairo
Prachi Gaikwad's Triumph
In a remarkable display of skill, Prachi Gaikwad secured the gold medal in the junior women's 50m rifle 3 positions (3P) event at the ISSF Junior World Cup Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun taking place in Cairo, Egypt. She achieved a score of 354.6 in the final, narrowly defeating Individual Neutral Athlete (AIN) Darya Chuprys, who finished with 354.4. The bronze medal was claimed by another AIN competitor, Elena Kretinina, who scored 343.3 and exited the final after her 34th shot.
India's Medal Count
Naraen Pranav also contributed to India's success by winning a bronze in the junior men's 10m air rifle, scoring 229.5 in the final. This victory marked India's second gold of the tournament, following Shiva Narwal's win in the men's 10m air pistol event on the opening day. With a total of four silver medals and three bronze medals, India has climbed to the top of the medal standings.
Details of Prachi Gaikwad's Performance
Prachi was the sole Indian participant in the junior women's 3P final at the Olympic International City Shooting range. She qualified in sixth place with a score of 578. During the final, she initially placed fifth after the first 10 shots in the Kneeling position. However, she advanced to second place after the Prone round, trailing Darya by just 0.6 points.
In the final Standing position, Prachi took the lead for the first time with a strong performance, scoring over 50 in her first five shots. Despite a brief setback where she fell to third place, she regained her focus and delivered an impressive final round, hitting the 10-ring four times, including two high 10s, ultimately winning by a narrow margin of 0.2 points.
Naraen's Bronze Medal Journey
In the junior men's 10m air rifle event, three Indian shooters qualified, with Naraen finishing in third place with a score of 630.9. Abhinav Shaw followed closely in fourth with 630.0, while Divyanshu Dewangan secured the seventh spot with 626.8. Divyanshu was the first to be eliminated in the final, finishing eighth with a score of 122.4 after 12 shots.
Naraen and Abhinav were in contention for third place alongside Uzbek shooter Javohir Sokhibov and Cypriot Achilleas Sophocleous, who were leading. Naraen fired impressive shots of 10.7 and 10.9, putting him in a strong position to challenge for silver. Abhinav's hopes faded after a 9.9 in the 20th shot, allowing Naraen to secure bronze, finishing just 0.4 points behind Sophocleous. Sokhibov claimed gold with a score of 251.2.
Strong Showing in Women's Air Pistol
In addition to the rifle events, Vanshika Chaudhary, Sejal Kamble, and Kanak also qualified for the junior women's 10m air pistol final, achieving scores of 579, 577, and 576, respectively, securing the top three positions on the leaderboard.