Esha shoots gold for Telangana at 36th National Games

Telangana shooter Esha Singh won the State’s second gold medal after winning the top honours in the 25 metres air pistol event in the women’s category at the 36th National Games

Hyderabad: Telangana shooter Esha Singh won the State’s second gold medal after winning the top honours in the 25 metres air pistol event in the women’s category at the 36th National Games in Gujarat, on Saturday.

The promising shooter shot 26 points in the final ahead of Haryana’s Rhythm Sang (25) and Maharashtra’s Abhidnya AS (19) in the final. Earlier in qualifiers, Esha topped the charts ahead of Olympian Manu Baker (583) with a score of 584 to qualify for the gold medal match.

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A day before, Telangana got the first gold through Riya who won the yellow metal in the Quad freestyle skating (artistic) event. The 17-year-old who led after the qualification rounds with an impressive score of 584, edged past Rhythm in the final round, shooting 26 to Rhythm’s 25.

“I’m over the moon. It is always special to win the gold but doing it in the National Games is very satisfying,” Esha Singh said. “I felt some sort of pressure in the early stages but then I regained my composure. I felt good from the fourth series and I shot consistently and accurately,’’ she added.

Esha was acutely aware of the tough competition in the final rounds. “In the first two rounds, I was definitely nervous. But I found out what was going wrong. I took a deep breath before each shot. It was a close affair, with Rhythm close on my heels. I kept cool in the last two shots to win the gold.’’

The Telangana shooter has steadily been improving. She conceded that this gold would do a world of good for her confidence. “My main priority will be the 2024 Paris Olympics quota. I’m happy with my performances so far. I think the National Games is a big event for any young athlete. I just want to enjoy my shooting.’’

Esha has already enjoyed a few highs in her career, the biggest of them coming in Egypt this year where she competed against the likes of seasoned shooters Anna Korakaki (Greece) and Antoaneta Kostadinova (Bulgaria) to win a silver medal. “Winning against such big shooters was a dream come true moment for me,’’ she said.

The Hyderabad-based girl has been selected for the forthcoming World Championships in Egypt, to be held from October 12 to 25. She will, however, shoot in the junior events.