Maheshwari Chauhan secures Paris Olympics 2024 quota after bagging silver medal in ISSF Shotgun Qualifiers
India’s skeet shooter Maheshwari Chauhan secured the silver medal in the women’s skeet competition on the final day of the ISSF Final Olympic Qualifiers for Shotgun in Lusail Shooting Range in Doha.
Notably, this was the 21st quota for Indian shooters in the Paris Olympics 2024 and it was the second in the women's skeet category.
Regrettably, Maheshwari Chauhan lost 3-4 to Chile’s Francisca Crovetto Chadid in a shoot-off for gold after both shooters were tied at 54 hits in the 60-shot final. Nevertheless, it was an impressive performance by the shoot as it was Indian shooter’s first-ever ISSF Final.
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“I am thrilled. There has been a lot of hard work over the years to get here. I am a bit bummed about the shoot-off, but overall, it has been very satisfying,” said Chauhan after setting for a second spot in the final.
How did Maheshwari Chauhan grab the silver medal?
The day began with the Indian on top of the qualification pile, but a final round score of 23, meant she would qualify for the top six final in fourth position. Her tally of 121 however, did give her the new national record.
In the qualification, the Indian shooter Chauhan started off with a top spot after shooting four consecutive scores of 25. However, her final round score of 23 descended her to the fourth position.
With the top six shooters from the qualification making it to the final, Chauhan’s total of 121 was sufficient to make it to the final and it was her new national record.
Interestingly, the second-ranked player in the qualification Francisca Crovetto Chadid secured a spot for the mega event in Paris in earlier competitions and China’s Jiang Yiting, the sixth-ranked qualifier, was ineligible after her nation already exhausted their spots in this particular event.
So, Maheshwari Chauhan had to fight with three other shooters in the final - Kazakhstan’s Assem Orybay, Azerbaijan’s Rigina Meftakhetdinova, and the top shooter in the qualification, Sweden’s Victoria Larsson.
At the first elimination stage (after 20 shots), Chauhan was in the second spot behind Chile’s Chadid. Orynbay was the first to exit after her poor show in the first 20 targets, missing five. Later, Meftakhetdinova missed five in 30 to bow out as Chauhan’s quota was confirmed at this point.
Maheshwari Chauhan, after confirming her quota, got stronger as the final progressed, catching up with the top shooter Chadid after 50 shots. However, Chauhan then had three chances to win the gold medal. But, she missed her double in the third shoot-off round to propel Chadid to the gold medal.