Indian Shooter Manu Bhaker Falls Short of 25m Pistol Medal in Shoot-off
Indian shooter Manu Bhaker narrowly missed out on clinching her third medal in the 25m pistol event at the Paris Olympics on August 3.
The 22-year-old Bhaker scored 28 in the eight-women final, falling short of achieving a historic hat-trick of medals in a single edition of the Games. She was edged out by Hungarian bronze medallist Veronika Major in a tense shoot-off.
Jiin Yang from South Korea secured the gold medal, while France’s Camille Jedrzejewski took silver. Hungary’s Veronika Major finished in third place. Yang and Jedrzejewski were tied at 37 points, leading to a shoot-off where the Korean shooter triumphed 4-1 at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre.
Bhaker, an accomplished shooter, had already won two medals at these Olympics: one in the women’s individual 10m air pistol event and another in the 10m air pistol mixed team event alongside Sarabjot Singh. The duo defeated South Korea’s Lee Wonho and Oh Ye Jin 16-10 in the bronze medal match.
Social media was abuzz with reactions to Bhaker’s performance. Many netizens on X expressed their admiration and pride in her efforts. Comments ranged from calling her “the real gold” to praising her resilience and contribution to India’s Olympic campaign.
India’s Olympic medal tally so far includes three bronze medals. On August 1, Swapnil Kusale secured bronze in the 50m rifle positions event. Additionally, Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh earned bronze in the 10m air pistol mixed team event on Tuesday.
