Haryana dominate National Pistol Trials, Naveen Singh wins gold in 10m air pistol event
Naveen Singh Cheema of Haryana defeated Punjab's Arjun Singh Cheema 16-12 to take gold in the men's 10m air pistol category on the last day of national trials here on Wednesday. Performances in these trials will be used to determine Indian teams for the next World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Naveen finished eighth in qualifying with a score of 581 at the M.P. Shooting Academy range, barely missing out on the final phases of the competition.
On the same score, the child was tied with three others, including Olympian and world number one Saurabh Chaudhary, but advanced due to greater inner 10s, while the latter finished ninth.
Naveen advanced to the medal round after placing second in the first semi-final behind Army's Dharmendra Singh Gaharwar, and then winning it with a score of 44 to set up a gold medal match with Arjun, who finished second in the medal round with 41.5.
Haryana shooters won four gold medals out of the eight Olympic pistol events, as well as various additional medals. In the trials, Haryana's pistol shooters, led by Rhythm Sangwan, who had a great performance, and others like Naveen, Sameer, and Suruchi, rose to the top. In addition, new talent has overshadowed several recognized stars that have been part of Indian teams in recent years.
The year's first national trials attracted over 3300 shooters, including some of the country's biggest stars. Because of the COVID-19 epidemic, the trials were postponed until January this year.