Second leg of ISSF’s South American Swing set to begin in Lima

New Delhi(The Uttam Hindu): The second leg of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun stage, is all set to begin at the Las Palmas range in Lima, Peru, with the first day of competitions on Tuesday, having both the men’s and women’s 10m air pistol finals on schedule. Close to 400 athletes from 43 countries, including a 35-member Indian contingent, will compete across 15 events in the three disciplines of Rifle, Pistol and Shotgun over the next week, to establish early supremacy with the blue-riband ISSF World Championships coming up at the end of the year. India finished second to China in the first leg which concluded last week in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The squad had won four golds and a total of eight medals. The two powerhouses will naturally be looking to renew their battle of one-upmanship in Lima.

Indian eyes on Tuesday will be on the likes of Manu Bhaker, Suruchi and Sainyam in the women’s air pistol while Saurabh Chaudhary, Varun Tomar and Ravinder will take another shot at gold in the men’s air pistol. All winners from the Argentina World Cup will be competing in Lima. Additionally, Czechia have also entered a strong squad including the likes of Jiri Privratsky, who was not present in the first leg in Argentina. Strong shooting nations like China, USA, Italy, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, Norway, Finland, Chinese Taipei and Australia, will continue to have a strong presence in Lima as they had in Argentina. Besides, the hosts have entered a large 37-member squad and other Latin American nations like Brazil, Guatemala and Chile, will also be looking to take full advantage of familiarity with regional conditions. The first qualifying rounds (50 targets) of the men’s and women’s skeet competitions also get underway on Tuesday, with Indian hopes pinned on Anant Jeet Singh Naruka, Bhavtegh Gill and Gurjoat Khangura in the men’s event while Raiza Dhillon, Ganemant Sekhon and Darshna Rathore carry Indian hopes in the women’s skeet.