National Shooting Championships: Olympian Raiza Dhillon Achieves a New and Equalled National Record

New Delhi/Bhopal, Dec 23 (NationPress) Haryana's Olympian Raiza Dhillon advanced to the skeet finals in both the women's senior and junior divisions at the ongoing 67th National Shooting Championship Competitions (NSCC) for Shotgun events, held at New Delhi’s Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range (DKSSR). During this event, she accomplished the feat of creating a new national record and equalled another record simultaneously.

Raiza, who represented India at the Paris Olympics, achieved a remarkable score of 122, which allowed her to lead both the junior women’s and women’s qualification rounds. This score surpassed Simranpreet Kaur Johal’s junior record of 120 set during the 2018 Jaipur Nationals and matched Ganemat Sekhon’s performance at the recently concluded ISSF World Cup Final in Delhi.

Experienced shooter Ganemat secured the second spot in the six-woman final with a score of 118 over five rounds spanning two days of qualification. Other notable competitors included Madhya Pradesh’s Vanshika Tiwari and Rajasthan’s Yashasvi Rathore, both of whom qualified for the finals in both junior and senior women’s categories.

On the same day, Munek Battula from Telangana shattered the junior men’s Skeet qualification national record with a score of 123, exceeding Abhay Singh Sekhon’s previous record of 122 set in Delhi in 2019.

In the men’s skeet qualification, Fatehbir Singh Shergill from Punjab topped the competition with a score of 123 across five rounds. Munek Battula also scored 123 but placed second after losing in a shoot-off against Fatehbir. Notable Olympians Mairaj Ahmad Khan and Angad Vir Singh Bajwa also made it to the final.

Mairaj and Angad both scored 121 and had to go through a shoot-off, with Mairaj securing the fifth position. They outperformed Paris Olympian Anantjeet Singh Naruka, who finished seventh with a score of 119.

Additionally, Munek Battula excelled in the junior men’s skeet, qualifying for two finals on Tuesday, along with Bhavtegh Singh Gill from Punjab.

Punjab's teams excelled, securing three of the four gold medals in team events, with Ganemat Sekhon contributing to the women’s team victory, and Bhavtegh Gill along with Harmehar Lally winning in both junior and men’s team categories.

Shahu Mane Clinches First Senior National Title

Renowned international rifle shooter Shahu Tushar Mane from the Railways captured his maiden senior national title by winning gold in the men’s 10m Air Rifle event at the M.P. State Academy (MPSA) Shooting range in Bhopal.

Another standout was Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil from Maharashtra, who scored an impressive 254.9 to win the junior final, breaking the existing senior finals world record held by Olympic Champion Sheng Lihao of China by 0.4 points.

Shahu initiated the men’s Air Rifle Day at the MPSA finals hall, recording no score below 10.1 in the 24-shot final, securing victory by the narrowest of margins. The Kolhapur native, who began his shooting career in 2015 and holds an ISSF World Cup gold in the air rifle mixed team along with an individual silver from the Youth Olympics, thwarted a late challenge from Dhanush Srikanth.

Dhanush, who logged a 9.8 for his fifth shot, finished with 252.2, just 0.1 points behind the winner. Both medalists scored 10.6 and 10.5 on their final two shots as the excitement in the stands soared.

Rajasthan’s Yash Vardhan secured bronze, finishing ahead of Rudrankksh. The men’s final also included Olympian Ravi Kumar, who placed eighth.

Rudrankksh Excels in Junior Men’s Final

After a disappointing senior final, Rudrankksh Patil bounced back to claim the junior men’s title with an outstanding performance. Despite a 10.0 on his second shot, he maintained consistent scores above 10.3 and left silver medalist Abishek Sekhar from Karnataka trailing by a significant 3.5 points. Haryana’s Himanshu took home the bronze.

Himanshu Wins Gold in Youth Category

This talented young shooter from Haryana participated in all three men’s individual finals that day, ultimately securing gold in the men’s 10m Air Rifle Youth competition with a score of 253.0. This marked his second medal of the day. Madhya Pradesh’s Yash Pandey finished second, trailing by 2.2, while West Bengal’s Abhinav Shaw clinched bronze.