Asian Games 2023: Palak clinches gold medal, Esha Singh silver in women's 10m Air Pistol

India has secured the top-two finish for the first time in the history of the continent meet.

India’s Palak Gulia and Esha Singh created history by clinching gold and silver medals respectively in the women’s 10m Air Pistol event at the Asian Games 2023. Palak emerged as the frontrunner, securing a remarkable total of 242.1 points, whereas Esha concluded the final event with a commendable score of 239.7 points. Talat Kishmala from Pakistan clinched the bronze medal, accumulating a noteworthy total of 218.2 points.

At the onset, following the completion of two rounds of shots, Esha emerged as the frontrunner with a total of 101 points, with Palak trailing closely behind with 100.7 points. However, after the 14th shot, Palak seized the lead, accumulating an impressive tally of 141 points.

Until the 16th round, Palak and Esha maintained the top two positions, while Chiaying Wu of Chinese Taipei occupied the third spot. However, after the 18th shot, Talat Kishmala from Pakistan rose up and solidified her position in third place.

India has witnessed a significant surge in its medal count at the ongoing Continental meet, as it now stands at 30. Notably, out of the 30 medals, an impressive 17 have been secured through the remarkable achievements in various disciplines of Shooting.

The achievements of Indian shooters in securing gold and silver medals have contributed to elevating India's position to fourth place in the current medal standings. In the earlier part of the day, Indian shooters, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Swapnil Suresh Kusale and Akhil Sheoran, were triumphant in securing the gold medal in the Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions event. Additionally, in the women's team 10m Air Pistol event, Palak, Esha Singh, and Divya TS exhibited their skills and attained the silver medal.

In the next shooting event, India’s Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Swapnil Suresh Kusale will be seen in action in the final of men’s individual 50m rifle 3 position event which is scheduled later for today.