Manu Bhaker eyes historic third medal in Paris Olympics, qualifies for 25m sports pistol final with second spot

Indian shooter Manu Bhaker is on track for a hat-trick of Olympic medals after securing a spot in the 25m sports pistol final, finishing second at the Chateauroux shooting range on Friday. Manu Bhaker, 22-year-old shooter, made history in India by winning two bronze medals at the Paris Olympics 2024.

Manu Bhaker, who continued to dominate the event and remained among the top three almost throughout the qualification phase, aggregated 590 to be placed second behind Hungary's Veronika Major who equalled the Olympic record with a score of 592.

Manu Bhaker, whose performance has improved significantly after reconciling with legendary former shooter-turned-coach Jaspal Rana, has won the 10m women's air pistol bronze and the 10m air pistol mixed team bronze with partner Sarabjot Singh.

She was in impregnable form in the sports pistol qualification rounds, firing 294 in the gruelling 'precision' round with scores of 97, 98 and 99. In the 'rapid round', Manu shot shot a perfect 100, two 98s for a aggregate of 296.

India's upcoming shooter and multiple Hangzhou Asian Games medallist Esha Singh faltered to aggregate 581 (291 in precision and 290 in rapid) to finish 18th among 40 shooters and miss the eight-shooter final by a distance.

After registering a record win by any Indian, Manu Bhaker had urged Indians to not be “disappointed” if she fails to add any more to her bag.

But going by her imperious form, the Jhajjar shooter could well be in line to win a gold or silver.

In Tokyo Games in 2021, Manu Bhaker's pistol had malfunctioned, stopping her from achieving her Olympic dream. She said that heartbreak made her value the medals here even more.

The young shooter said she looks up to javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and shuttler PV Sindhu as they have “proved themselves”. Manu Bhaker is the second youngest Indian athlete to win an Olympic medal after PV Sindhu.

India has won all three medals so far in shooting, with Manu bagging two and Swapnil Kusale taking the bronze in 50m rifle three-positions on Thursday.

Former Indian cricket team coach Rahul Dravid, too, has called her performance at the Paris Olympics “incredible” after she won her second medal.

“Manu's story is incredible after the disappointment of Tokyo Olympics, to come here and be able to get over that and compete and bronze is a phenomenal achievement,” Rahul Dravid said.

(With PTI inputs)