ISSF World Cup Final 2017: Italy tip China to top medals tally; hosts India finish 7th in tournament

New Delhi: Hosts India finished seventh overall with one gold, one silver and a bronze, while Italy pipped China in the medals tally, as the ISSF World Cup Final came to a close on Sunday. India won through Jitu Rai/Heena Sidhu (gold in mixed team 10m air pistol) Sangram Dahiya (silver in men’s double trap) and Amanpreet Singh (bronze in men’s 50m pistol). This was India’s best ever result in the annual ISSF shooting centrepiece. [caption id=“attachment_4183893” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Silver medalist Daniele Resca, Gold medalist Alberto Fernandez and Bronze medalist Giovanni Cernogoraz pose with their medals after the Trap Men Final. Image courtesy: ISSF official website[/caption] In the ISSF Champion of Champions event, where all medal winners in the rifle and pistol events could compete for a purse of 5000 euros each, China’s Rio 2016 10m air pistol women’s champion, Mengxue Zhang and Gengcheng Sui, were crowned Champion of Champions in pistol and rifle respectively. India’s Jitu Rai had won the pistol event last time around. On the concluding day’s final event, the men’s trap, Spain’s Alberto Fernandez, six-time world cup gold medallist and bronze medallist in last year’s WCF, won gold with a world record score of 48 out of 50 in the final. Italy’s reigning world champion Daniele Resca won silver with an effort of 46 and his medal was crucial as it helped Italy beat China in the medals table. Daniele’s silver meant Italy finished with two gold, three silver and one bronze, while China ended with two gold, two silver and five bronze medals. In the two other medal events of the day, France’s Rio Olympics bronze medallist Alexis Raynaud won gold in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions event, getting the better of young 18- year old Czech Filip Nepejchal 461.7 to 458.5 in the final. The 20-year-old Hungarian Istvan Peni won bronze with an effort of 449.1 to round off a good trip with a total of one gold (10m air rifle) and one bronze medal. In the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol, Keith Sanderson of the USA won gold over silver winning Frenchman Clement Bessaguet. Keith shot 31 out of 40 in the final to Clement’s 29. Korea’s Jong Ho Song shot 24 to claim bronze.