NEW DELHI: India's
Vijayveer Sidhu
secured a 17th Paris Games quota place for the nation by clinching a silver medal in the men's 25m rapid-fire event at the
Asian Olympic Qualifiers
in Jakarta on Saturday.
The 21-year-old, who won a team bronze at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, joins fellow countryman
Anish Bhanwala
in earning a Paris berth in the 25m rapid fire.
Anish had previously secured the Olympic quota with a bronze medal at the Asian Championship in Changwon, Korea, last year. Vijayveer, however, didn't have to rely on the medal; he earned the quota by qualifying for the final in fourth place with a score of 577.
In the final, where four out of the six finalists were eligible for quota places, Vijayveer showcased his skill by
shooting
28 in the elimination round, securing the silver behind Kazakhstan's Nikita Chiryukin, who claimed the gold with a score of 32.
Rapid-fire pistol has traditionally been a strong event for India, with Vijay Kumar winning silver at the 2012 London Olympic Games. If both Vijayveer and Anish make it to the
Paris Olympics
, it will mark the first instance of two Indian shooters representing the country in the rapid-fire shooting category.
Indian shooters have now secured four Paris Olympics quota places in Jakarta, with Esha Singh (women's 10m air pistol), Varun Tomar (men's 10m air pistol), Rhythm Sangwan (women's 25m sports pistol), and Vijayveer Sidhu adding to the list of qualifiers.
(With PTI inputs)
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