New Delhi: It looks impossible to halt the Jitu Rai juggernaut. Just when one felt that the diminutive Army Pistol ace’s Medal winning spree at World Shooting events would come to an end, he pulled out the proverbial ‘rabbit out of the hat’ in the Men’s 10m Air Pistol event at the ongoing Shooting World Cup (Rifle/Pistol) in Changwon, Korea to clinch the Bronze Medal. This is Jitu’s seventh continuous Medal in World Shooting events, a run which started way back in June, 2014.

What makes this Medal even more special is the fact that Jitu disappointed yesterday in his pet 50m Pistol, finishing 21st, in an event where he is ranked 2nd in the world and one in which he had won India her first Olympic quota place at the World Championships in Granada last year, with a Silver winning performance.

At one stage it looked all lost, when Jitu overcame a sluggish start in the qualification round, where shooters have to shoot a total of 60 shots, to just about make it to the final round in 8th position with a score of 581. In the eight man final as well, Jitu started off very slowly, unable to score 10 or more with his shots with any form of regularity, before coming into his own midway through the finals to clinch the Bronze. Jitu’s Korean rival and world number one Jin Jongoh, was meanwhile shooting on a different planet and won Gold with a Finals World Record score of 206. Nuang Ye Tun of Malaysia won the Silver Medal in the event.

“We are delighted to see another Bronze coming our way through Jitu’s performance today. The phenomenon of Jitu Rai has surfaced again, adding to his rich haul of medals since last year. This only showcases the class that this young Army Marksman possesses and what strength he adds to the Indian contingent. I would also like to thank the Armed Forces for their continuous efforts towards providing top class shooters without fail,” said Mr. Raninder Singh, President, NRAI after Jitu’s win today.

In other news from India’s shooting contingent in Changwon, Jitu’s compatriots in the 10m Air Pistol, Prakash Nanjappa and Gurpreet Singh finished 18th and 48th respectively in the qualification round. Chain Singh did well to qualify for the eight man final in the Men’s 50m Rifle Prone event ahead of established stars like Gagan Narang and finished sixth in the finals. Chain had shot 623.4 to qualify for the finals in seventh position. In the Women’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions, Elizabeth Susan Koshy shot 580 in her elimination round to finish fourth, while Lajja Gauswami and Anjali Bhagwat in their respective elimination rounds finished fifth and eighth respectively with scores of 568 and 567.