Changwon (South Korea), Aug 23: India’s Arjun Babuta and Elavenil Valarivan clinched the gold medal in the 10m air rifle mixed team event at the 16th Asian Shooting Championship on Saturday, adding another glittering chapter to India’s shooting success.
The Indian pair staged a remarkable comeback to outclass China’s Dingke Lu and Xinlu Peng 17-11 in the final. The Chinese shooters had taken an early lead, but Babuta and Elavenil recovered from shaky opening shots of 9.5 and 10.1 to dominate the later rounds and finish on top of the podium.
With this win, both Elavenil (Tamil Nadu) and Babuta (Punjab) secured their second gold medals of the tournament. Earlier, Elavenil triumphed in the 10m air rifle women’s event, while Babuta teamed up with Rudrankksh Patil and Kiran Jadhav to clinch gold in the men’s team rifle event.
Double Delight in Junior Category
India also tasted success in the junior category, where Shambhavi Shravan and Naraen Pranav won the 10m air rifle mixed team junior gold, defeating China 16-12 after a strong finish.
The Indian pair had qualified third with a total score of 629.5, behind China 2 (632.3) and China 1 (630). However, as only one team per nation could qualify for the final, China 2 advanced along with India.
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Shambhavi’s scores: 105.4, 105.2, 104.4
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Pranav’s scores: 103.7, 105.7, 105.1
India’s Isha Taksale and Himanshu narrowly missed out, finishing fourth with 628.6.
For Shambhavi, this was her second gold medal, after winning the women’s junior 10m air rifle team event alongside Hrudya Shri Kondur and Isha Anil, with a junior world record score of 1896.2 on Friday.
India’s Medal Surge
The latest victories further strengthen India’s standing at the Asian Shooting Championship 2025, showcasing depth in both senior and junior shooting categories.
