ISSF World Cup Final: Simranpreet strikes gold, equals junior world record in 25m pistol; Aishwary, Anish bag silver
Simranpreet Kaur Brar on Sunday won the gold medal in women’s 25m pistol final after Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar got the day going with a silver in men’s 50m 3 positions at the ongoing ISSF World Cup Final in Doha.
In the eight-woman final, Simranpreet equalled Yang Jiin’s junior world record, the South Korean having notched a score of 41 twice in 2024. The young markswoman began with two hits out of five but shot 39 of the next 45 above the required mark of 10.2 or above, for a superlative effort. China’s Yao Qianxun, reigning air pistol world champion, won silver with 36 hits, while former world champion Doreen Vennekamp of Germany won bronze with 30 hits.
Simranpreet, who finished in the fifth place with 584-25x in qualifying, had made the final alongside Esha Singh, who eventually finished seventh. Double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker, the other Indian in action, missed the final by the barest of margins, registering three inner-10s less than China’s Yujie Sun, the last qualifier for the eight-woman final.
After the contest, Simranpreet said, “I was focused on executing my shots rather than focusing on the screen. I was calm, but inside we have nervousness for the finals. I am just happy I executed it properly.”
Meanwhile, Aishwary’s score of 413.3 saw him finish behind Jiri Privratsky of Czechia, who won gold with a score of 414.2, a world record score. China’s Liu Yukun won bronze with a score of 388.9.
Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar in action.
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar in action.
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Aishwary ends the year strongly after a barren first half, with an Asian Championship gold, a World Championship, and a World Cup final silver each.
Sift Kaur Samra finished last in her field after two 50m rifle 3 positions shooters from the home country Qatar got a DNS.
Anish Bhanwala rounded off a profitable day two for the country with a silver in men’s 25m rapid fire pistol. The Indian ace finished on 31 hits, two behind Chinese legend and reigning Olympic champion Li Yuehong in the fourth final of the day at the Lusail Shooting Complex.
This was Anish’s second WCF medal, an upgrade from the bronze he won at the same venue two years back. Reigning world champion Clement Bessaguet of France won bronze. It was Li’s second WCF gold and fifth WCF medal overall.
With new ISSF formats applicable in Doha, there were eight instead of six finalists in the men’s RFP, and Anish shot 583 in qualifying to take the fifth spot, while Vijayveer shot 579 to become the first eighth qualifier in the event. Bessaguet topped with 590, while Yuehong, who missed most of the year, shot 587 for second.
Speaking after the match, Anish said, “Yes, it has turned out to be a great competition for me. I was vacationing after the World Championships and trained just enough for this match. It was a great competition, and I enjoyed the new format. It’s great because there are more finalists, and so more nations will be able to cheer their athletes. Earlier 50 per cent of the finalists used to win medals so this is more competitive. It’s good for RFP overall.”
India will have one more shot at a medal on Monday, the final day of competitions, when Zorawar Sandhu takes aim in the men’s Trap final.
Published on Dec 07, 2025