Asia Olympic Qualifiers: Raiza-Gurjoat pair wins bronze in skeet mixed team event

Kuwait City: Young Raiza Dhillon, who had secured a Paris Olympics quota for India, partnered with Gurjoat Khangura to clinch a bronze in the skeet mixed team event and pick up her third medal of the Asia Olympic Qualification Shotgun competition here on Sunday. The Indian pair outshot local favourites Abdullah Alrashidi and Eman Al Shama 41-39 in the second bronze medal match. The 19-year-old Raiza had won a silver and a Paris Olympic berth in the women’s skeet individual event on Saturday, as did Anantjeet Singh Naruka in men’s skeet. Raiza had also won the women’s skeet team gold. India concluded the competition with one gold, three silver and four bronze medals for a fourth place finish on the overall standings. The skeet mixed team event will make its debut in the Paris Olympics and India has done quite well in the build up to it. The pair of Mairaj Ahmad Khan and Ganemat Sekhon had picked up a gold in the Cairo World Cup stage last year. In Kuwait on Sunday, Raiza and Gurjoat did well to pick up a bronze. Raiza and Gurjoat tallied 138 in the 17-pair qualification round out of a possible 150 and just about made the second bronze match-up. There, they faced the Kuwaiti legend Alrashidi and his partner Eman. The Indians began the final well, staying in the lead after the first two series, but the Kuwaitis fought back to go ahead. The fifth series saw the Kuwaitis faltered badly as Raiza and Gurjoat nailed all four of their targets. Honours were even in the sixth series enabling the Indians to pull-off a two-point victory.