New Delhi, 06 February (H.S.): Indian shooters continued their dominant run at the 2026 Asian Shooting Championships (Rifle and Pistol events) hosted at Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range, securing multiple medals on Friday. In the men's 10m air rifle event, Rudranksh Balasaheb Patil and Arjun Babuta delivered a stunning 1-2 finish, clinching gold and silver respectively.Friday belonged entirely to Rudranksh, who topped the qualification round with a stellar score of 632.1.

The highlight of his performance was the final series, where he scored an impressive 107.1.In the eight-shooter final, Rudranksh picked up right where he left off in qualification. He quickly advanced to the top two as the elimination phase began. Japan's Naoya Okada, who later won bronze, surrendered his early lead, after which Rudranksh never looked back.

Arjun Babuta had qualified sixth with 628.0 in qualification. He produced a strong showing in the final, finishing just 1.2 points behind Rudranksh to claim silver.India's Vishal Singh placed 10th in qualification and became the last shooter to qualify for the final amid the presence of two RPO (Ranking Points Only) competitors. He finished fifth in the final with 185.5 points.Kiran Ankush Jadhav also shone in qualification with 628.9 but could not participate in the final due to RPO rules, settling for fourth place.

In the junior 10m air pistol mixed team event, India's Vanshika Chaudhary and Mukesh Nelavali pair won gold, bringing pride to the nation. Due to the rule allowing only one team per National Olympic Committee (NOC) in the final, the second-placed qualification pair of Rashmika Sahgal and Jonathan Gavin Anthony could not compete.

The Vanshika-Mukesh duo scored 481.1 in the final, establishing a new junior world record. Indonesia's Arista Pardana Putra Darmoyo and Muhammad Iqbal Raya Prabowo secured silver, while Kazakhstan's Asselim Zhakiya and Temerlan Yerdembek earned bronze.

India leads the 2026 Asian Championships medal tally with 18 medals, comprising 11 gold, 6 silver, and 1 bronze.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar