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India has claimed yet another Olympic quota in shooting as Palak Gulia returned with a bronze at the recently concluded Final Olympic Qualification Championships for rifle and pistol in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Gulia was part of an incredibly competitive field going into the finals, with seven of the eight participating shooters eligible for a quota. The Asian Games gold medalist got a slow start in Brazil, staying tied for sixth with compatriot Sainyam before making quick progress just in time for the elimination rounds.
In the end, Armenia’s Elmira Karapetyan took gold with a score of 240.7, while Thai youngster Kamonlak Saencha settled for silver with a 240.5. Palak Gulia scored 217.6 for her bronze.
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Given that Karapetyan already had an Olympic quota to her name going into the Final Olympic Qualification Championships, Saencha and Gulia were awarded the berths instead.
With this, India has now claimed 20 Olympic shooting quotas. For the Games, every country is eligible for eight quotas in each event - rifle, pistol, and trap and skeet.
India is at capacity for the rifle and pistol events, and the nation’s shotgun shooters will hope to claim the remaining four quota places at the upcoming Final Olympic Qualification Championships for shotgun in Doha, Qatar.
Palak Gulia’s coach on her outing in Brazil
For Palak Gulia, who showed incredible promise at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, her time in Brazil was not the most ideal despite the bronze. She qualified for the finals in sixth place and looked slightly inconsistent in her last round.
Speaking on her performance at the Championships, Gulia's coach, Rakesh Singh, told the Indian Express that the pressure for the quota place is likely what got to her.
“The quota pressure is always there since it was the last event for achieving it in pistol. But Palak kept her cool to cut down the deficit and seal the quota. There was a bit of inconsistency initially but I am glad that the quota pressure is off. Once she is back, our focus will be on the four Olympic trials," he said.
The first two phases of the Indian Olympic shooting trials are scheduled to take place from April 18 to 27 at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi. Meanwhile, the latter two trials will be conducted at the MP Shooting Academy from May 10 to 19.
