Jitu Rai breaks CWG record to win gold; silver for Mehuli Ghosh in women’s 10m air rifle

Jitu Rai created a new Commonwealth Games (CWG) record of 235.1 in the final of the men’s 10m air pistol event in Gold Coast to win gold while Om Prakash Mitharwal bagged bronze. In women’s 10m air rifle Mehuli Ghosh won silver while Apurvi Chandela took bronze.

other sports Updated: Apr 09, 2018 09:39 IST
Jitu Rai reached the final of the 10m air pistol event with a score of 570, 14 points behind teammate Om Prakash Mitharwal. Rai, however, stepped it up on the grand stage when it mattered to bag gold while Mitharwal grabbed bronze.
Jitu Rai reached the final of the 10m air pistol event with a score of 570, 14 points behind teammate Om Prakash Mitharwal. Rai, however, stepped it up on the grand stage when it mattered to bag gold while Mitharwal grabbed bronze.(AP)

India’s Jitu Rai won gold in the men’s 10m air pistol at the Commonwealth Games (CWG 2018) after breaking the Games record in Gold Coast on Monday. India had a double podium finish in the event with Om Prakash Mitharval bagging the bronze medal. (CWG live updates)

Rai created a new CWG record of 235.1 in the final to win gold. Kerry Bell of Australia took silver with 233.5 and Om Mitharwal bagged the bronze medal for India with 214.3.

Meanwhile, Mehuli Ghosh had to settle for the silver medal after a tight duel for the top spot against Martina Lindsay Veloso of Singapore. Apurvi Chandela won bronze in the event.

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Ghosh, who was trailing Veloso till the last shot of the final, scored 10.9 to take things to a shootout, where she managed 9.9 against the Singapore shooter’s 10.3, missing gold by a whisker.

Apurvi set a new CWG record of 423.2 to clinch the top spot in the qualifying stage earlier. She beat her own previous CWG mark of 415.6, set at the 2014 edition in Glasgow, Scotland. Ghosh registered 413.7 to finish fifth in the qualification stage.

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Earlier, Mitharval equalled the CWG record on his way to qualifying for the final of the men’s 10m Air Pistol event here on Monday.

Om shot 584 in the qualifying round to equal the meet record set by fellow Indian Samaresh Jung at the 2006 CWG in Melbourne.

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Jitu Rai reached the final with a score of 570 before stepping it up on the grand stage when it mattered to bag gold.