Indian shooter Rhythm Sangwan has shattered all previous records by obtaining India's 16th quota spot in the shooting competition for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. In the women's 25-meter pistol competition at the Asian Shooting Championships 2024 in Jakarta, Indonesia, she grabbed a bronze medal. With this accomplishment, India has reached the 15 quota places acquired ahead of Tokyo 2020 and will send their largest-ever shooting squad to the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.
The World Cup bronze medalist qualified for the final with a top score of 588, shooting two rapid-fire series of 100 at Senayan Shooting range. She had 28 hits out of 35 targets, earning her first two Paris quotas, followed by the Korean squad at third position and Chinese Taipei shooter Wu Chia Ying at fifth position.
Rhythm said that if she had missed out on this opportunity after reaching two world championship finals, it would have been really difficult. However, this is the format of this sport and I suppose it was worth waiting to be a historic one. The shooter stated, "I want to thank my entire team for the support and I am very happy, especially with the medals we have won."
In the previous qualifying events, South Korea had already grabbed two quotas in the women's 25m pistol. Rhythm had to place higher than three of the four remaining finalists, excluding the three Koreans. Starting with Wu giving her a run for her money, Rhythm struggled early on in the eighth series of five rapid-fire shots, placing her between fifth and sixth with two Singaporeans.
In the fourth and fifth series, she hit two straight fours, giving an exit to Filipino Shayne Quiroz. Her bronze medal win, surpassing Wu and Korean Minseo Kim, boosted her confidence after securing it behind Jin Yang (gold) and Yeji Kim (silver).
India leads the standings with eight gold, seven silver, and six bronze medals, surpassing China in the women's 25-meter pistol team event.
