Elavenil Valarivan wins silver in women's 10m air rifle at Asian Games 2026
(Courtesy :Â @elavenil.valarivan/Instagram)
She also won silver in the team event alongside Sonam Maskar and Vidarsa K Vinod
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Elavenil Valarivan came close to winning gold in the women’s 10m air rifle final at the Asian Games 2026 but had to settle for silver after finishing with a score of 252.4 on September 20.
Japan’s Taichi Hashimoto won the gold medal with 253.0, while Korea’s Ban Hyeon took bronze with 230.4.
Elavenil made an excellent start to the final and remained in first position from the opening shot through the 21st shot.
However, the 22nd shot changed the standings as the Indian shooter dropped from the top spot. She could not regain the lead over the final two shots and eventually finished second after completing all 24 shots.
RELATED: India win first medal at Asian Games 2026; clinch silver in women’s 10m air rifle team event
Her silver is India’s second overall medal at the Asian Games 2026, with both coming in shooting. Earlier in the day, Elavenil was also part of India’s silver medal-winning women’s 10m air rifle team alongside Sonam Maskar and Vidarsa K Vinod.
Elavenil entered the individual final after finishing seventh in qualification with 633.5 points. Sonam Maskar, who had qualified third with 634.1 points, also made the eight-shooter final and finished sixth with 167.0 points. Vidarsa did not make the individual final after finishing 12th in qualification.
Also Read: India at Asian Games 2026: Shooting schedule, squad, & live streaming details
The result adds to Elavenil’s strong run in the event this year. She won the women’s 10m air rifle gold at the 2026 Asian Rifle/Pistol Championships in New Delhi, continuing her good record at the continental level.
She had also reached the final of the ISSF World Cup in Hangzhou earlier this year, where she finished sixth, while Sonam took fifth position.
Elavenil’s silver also completes a productive day for the Indian women’s 10m air rifle team. China had earlier won the team gold with 1904.2 points, while India finished second with 1898.0 and Japan took bronze with 1897.1.
For Elavenil, the individual silver came after she had led the final for 21 shots, while the two silver medals gave India an encouraging start to its shooting campaign at Aichi-Nagoya 2026.
What medals did India win in shooting on the opening day of the Asian Games 2026?
India won two silver medals — Elavenil Valarivan in the Women’s 10m Air Rifle individual event, and the trio of Elavenil, Sonam Uttam Maskar, and Vidarsa Kochalumkal Vinod in the team event.
How close was Elavenil Valarivan to winning gold?
Elavenil finished just 0.6 points behind Japan’s Hinata Taichi, who won gold with an Asian Games record score of 253.0.
Which shooting events are scheduled next at the Asian Games 2026?
On September 21, medals will be decided in the Men’s 10m Air Rifle individual and team events, alongside the start of Men’s and Women’s Skeet qualification.
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