Manu, Rahi placed 5th, 25th respectively in 25m pistol qualifications
Indian shooters Manu Bhaker and Rahi Sarnobat were placed 5th and 25th respectively in the women's 25m pistol qualification (precision) at the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday. In a field of 44 shooters, Bhaker scored 292 after 30 shots on target in the precision round while compatriot Sarnobat aggregated 287 in the qualifications at the Asaka Shooting Range.
Second stage of qualification will take place on Friday
The second stage of the qualification -- the rapid round -- will take place on Friday. The top-8 shooters in the qualification will enter the final. Serbia's Zorana Arunovic led the pack with 296 points, followed by Greece's Anna Korakaki who has 294.
Bhaker had fine start; came back strongly in second series
Noticeably, in the third relay, Bhaker had a fine start as the 19-year-old shooter shot back-to-back 97s in the first two series. With just two 9s in the third, Bhaker accumulated 98 points to climb into the top-5. Bhaker came back strongly to score five 10s off her last five shots after three points in the second series.
Sarnobat managed 94 in the final series of precision
Meanwhile, Osijek World Cup gold medalist Sarnobat, who was in the first relay of 10 shooters, started the precision round with a 96 and followed it with a 97. However, thanks to an 8 and a few 9s, she managed 94 in the final series of precision. Her total in precision rounds was 287/300 which placed her 7th out of 10 in her relay.
Bhaker had missed out on qualifying for 10m pistol finals
Earlier, Bhaker narrowly missed out on qualifying for the finals of the women's 10m air pistol event in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on July 25. It is understood that the 19-year-old faced a "circuit malfunction" after making an impressive start, due to which she lost her momentum. She finished 12th with a score of 575 in the qualification stage.
