By Admin 
Anushka Thokur came up with a sterling fare to beat Anastasiia Sorokina by 6.1 points to clinch the 50-metre rifle 3-position gold in the Junior World Cup at the Dr. Karni Singh Range, Tughlakabad, on Sunday.
It was the second gold for the 18-year-old Anushka who trains at the Gun For Glory Academy in Chennai. Anushka was supreme as she first topped qualification with 584, and then shot 461 in the 45-shot final in which she led right from the start.
Anushka had opened India’s gold account on the first day with the prone gold. After having got the taste of international exposure in the Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany, earlier this season, Anushka had also won the Asian junior gold in the 3-position event in Shymkent, Kazakhstan.
In the junior men’s 3-position event, Dmitriii Pimenov, an individual neutral athlete (AIN), beat Adriyan Karmakar by 5.1 points for the gold. Till 40 shots in the final, Adriyan was breathing down the neck of Pimenov, barely a point away, but the latter accelerated to a brilliant finish with shots of 10.7 and 10.8. In comparison, Adriyan got stuck with the 8s and 9s that widened the gap.
Adriyan Karmakar won silver in junior men’s 3-position event.
| Photo Credit:
Kamesh Srinivasan
Yet, it was a creditable fare from Adriyan, son of Olympic finalist Joydeep Karmakar, to have risen to the silver after having won bronze in the Junior World Cup in Suhl. Adriyan had also won the 3-position gold in the Asian junior championship in Shymkent.
India was leading the medals table with four gold, six silver and three bronze. AIN followed with three gold, one silver and two bronze. Italy was third with two gold and a silver. Finland, Spain, Cyprus and Iran were the other countries figuring on the medals table.
The results: 50m rifle 3-position: Junior men: 1. Dmitrii Pimenov (AIN) 459.9 (586); 2. Adriyan Karmakar 454.8 (587); 3. Kamil Nuriakhmetov (AIN) 441 (576); 5. Vedant Waghmare 420.9 (577); 7. Sami Ullah Khan 393 (573); 8. Gaurav Desale 572; 10. Rohit Kanyan 570.
Junior women: 1. Anushka Thokur 461 (584); 2. Anastasiia Sorokina (AIN) 454.9 (580); 3. Mariia Kruglova (AIN) 444 (582); 7. Prach Gaikwad 399.3 (574); 9. Melvina Gladson 572; 11. Aadhya Agrawal 563.