Sports

Manu Bhaker Makes History: Wins Bronze with Sarabjot Singh in 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team Event at Paris Olympics

Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh won bronze in the 10m mixed team air pistol event on Tuesday, earning India its second medal in the current Paris Olympics 2024. Manu and Sarabjot defeated South Korea 16–10 to double India’s medal total at the Games in the shooting competition. They qualified for the bronze medal match on Monday.Sarabjot, who was competing in the men’s event, was unable to place higher than third, while Manu made history on Sunday by being the first Indian woman shooter to win a medal at the Olympics. On the other hand, Manu’s victory today has cemented her legacy, since she is now the first athlete from an independent India to win several medals at one Olympics. Also, this is the first Olympic medal for India in the team shooting competition.

Over the years, Indian sports have produced several accomplished Olympians. The nation has been honored by KD Jadhav, Major Dhyan Chand, Karnam Malleswari, Abhinav Bindra (the first-ever individual gold medallist), Saina Nehwal, Sushil Kumar, PV Sindhu, Neeraj Chopra, and numerous others. Nevertheless, none of them were able to accomplish the distinction that Manu, at the age of 22, did in her second games—winning numerous medals at the Olympics. However, hold on. And that’s not all. Manu now has the opportunity to pull off the unimaginable and win a hat-trick of medals if she hits in the 25-meter air rifle competition.

There was a race to sixteen points in this tournament, and the winners were the first two pairs to score sixteen points. With 20.5 points, the Indian shooters Manu and Sarabjot kicked off the match with a combined score of 18.8, giving Korea the lead. India won the second set, 2-2, with Manu scoring 10.7 and Sarabjot scoring 10.5. Korea had shot 19.9. Sarabjot and Manu each scored 10.4 in the following round, for a total of 20.8 points. India led 4-2 after Oh Ye Jin’s 9.1 score wounded Korea, whose final score was 19.8. With another series victory, India extended their lead to 6-2 as Manu and Sarabjot scored 20.7 to Korea’s 20.5.

How the match played out

The sixth series was won by India, who now lead the game 8-2 after Korea called a timeout. India’s tally was 20.1 against Korea’s 19.5, thanks to Sarabjot’s 9.6 and Manu’s outstanding 10.6. But in the sixth series, Korea rallied with a tremendous 10.8 from Oh Ye Jin, making the score 8–4. Manu scored 10.6 points and Sarabjot scored 9.4, as they swiftly regained their winning ways and won the seventh series 10-4. Korea was unable to match their total. Manu repeatedly hit between the 10.4 and 10.5 range, making up for Sarabjot’s mistakes every time he missed a shot that was less than a 10-pointer.

In the subsequent series, Sarabjot scored 10.2 and Manu scored 8.3, but Korea’s 20.7 won the series, making the final score 10-6. Following a timeout, Sarabjot’s shooting arm was tweaked by the coach of India, who also had a conversation with Manu. With Sarabjot scoring an incredible 10.5 and Manu hitting a flawless 10, India defeated Korea with a score of 20.5 to 19.4. The timeout proved to be helpful. With just four points separating them and a 12-6 advantage, India is now in contention for a medal.

India now leads 14-6 as Manu and Sarabjot maintained their stellar form, scoring 20.8 compared to the Koreans’ 19.4 points. The following series, however, had a twist: Manu scored 9.6 and Sarabjot scored 9.7, which meant that India lost but still had a comfortable lead at 14-8. After India scored 20.2 to the Koreans’ 21.0, the Koreans battled back, winning the next set 14–10.

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India was still in a good position despite their comeback; they were only one series away from winning the match and taking home the bronze. It was only a matter of time, as India eventually secured the medal with a dominating 16-10 victory in the final series, scoring 19.6 to South Korea’s 18.5.