National Shooting Trials: Ashi Chouksey betters world record

India's top rifle shooters continued to dazzle at the national selection trials, with Arjun Babuta and Ashi Chouksey stealing the limelight with remarkable victories on Wednesday. Arjun Babuta, already a Paris Olympics quota holder, clinched back-to-back wins in the competitions.

In the men's 10m air rifle T4 finals, Babuta narrowly missed out on breaking the world record, scoring an impressive 252.5, just 1.2 points short of the current record held by Divyansh Singh Panwar. This performance followed his equally stellar display in the T3 trials. The competition witnessed stiff challenges from Tamil Nadu's Sri Karthik Sabari Raj and Rajasthan's Yash Vardhan, who secured the second and third positions, respectively.

Meanwhile, in the women's 25m air pistol T4 event, former Asian Games champion Rahi Sarnobat displayed her class by clinching the top spot with a finals score of 33, after a solid performance in the qualifications with a score of 583. Jaspreet Kaur from Punjab and Annu Raj Singh from Air India secured the second and third positions, respectively.

However, the highlight of the day undoubtedly belonged to Ashi Chouksey, who not only dominated the qualifiers but also shattered records in the women's 50m rifle 3 positions T4 competition. Chouksey's exceptional qualification round, where she dropped only three points, including a jaw-dropping 597, set a scorching pace. Her performance was just a point shy of the current world record jointly held by Norway's Jenny Stene and USA's Sagen Maddalena.

Maintaining her composure in the finals, Chouksey secured a convincing victory with a total score of 461.8, leaving her competitors trailing behind. Vidarsa Vinod from Kerala settled for second place, marking her second consecutive runner-up finish in two days, while Haryana's Himani Poonia secured the third spot.