New Delhi [India], October 17 : Jaipur boys Vivaan Kapoor and Olympian Anantjeet Singh Naruka brought joy to home fans on the final day of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup Final Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun New Delhi 2024.
Vivaan won silver in the men's trap, his first individual ISSF medal at the senior level, while Anantjeet clinched bronze in men's skeet at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range (DKSSR) in the national capital on Thursday.
Their performances doubled India's medal tally to four, with two silver and two bronze medals, placing them ninth in the standings. China topped the table with five golds and three bronze medals. Seven other nationsItaly, Germany, France, Hungary, Denmark, San Marino, and the USAeach won a gold. Italy finished second with three silvers and a bronze, while Germany secured third with two silvers and a gold, according to a press release from the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI).
A total of 14 nations, out of 37 participants, won medals in the prestigious annual ISSF season finale.
Vivaan competed in the final event of the day, the men's trap final, against a strong field that included two Olympic champions, the Paris Olympic silver medallist, and a former world champion. Undeterred, he delivered an outstanding performance, hitting 44 out of 50 shots to claim silver. China's Qi Ying, the Paris silver medallist, won gold with 47 hits, while Turkiye's Tolga Tuncer took bronze.
Reflecting on his performance, a composed Vivaan said, "It was all God's grace and my coach's [former world champion Khaled Almudaf of Kuwait] efforts."
Anantjeet, India's top men's skeet shooter, has been on the rise since his silver at the Asian Games in Hangzhou. He competed in his first Olympics in Paris, narrowly missing a bronze in the Skeet Mixed Team event alongside Maheshwari Chauhan, finishing fourth.
His individual ISSF medal was inevitable and came at home, overcoming a shaky start with two misses in the first 10 shots of the 60-shot men's skeet final. He finished with 43 hits out of 50, behind Italy's Tammaro Cassandro, who won gold with 57 hits, and double Olympic champion Gabriele Rossetti, who secured silver with 56 hits.
"I was really pumped up today and didn't want to finish fourth or fifth. I wanted to win a medal, and I'm very happy I achieved that," said Anantjeet after the final.
In the other two finals of the day, Samantha Simonton of the USA won gold with a score of 56, edging out Italy's double Olympic champion Diana Bacosi, who shot 54. France's Lucie Anastassiou won bronze.
In the women's trap event, San Marino's Alessandra Perilli claimed gold with 45 hits, comfortably ahead of Italy's Erica Sessa, who secured silver with 39 hits. Turkiye's Safiye Temizdemir won bronze.
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