New Delhi

World Championship silver medallist Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Manini Kaushik emerged as the top performers in the men’s and women’s 50m rifle prone events respectively on the opening day of the Rifle and Pistol National Selection Trials 1 and 2 (Group A) here on Monday.

Manini delivered a steady and composed performance to finish first in the women’s 50m rifle prone Trial 1, registering an aggregate score of 625.0. Her series-wise scores of 104.7, 104.2, 102.3, 104.6, 104.2 and 105 reflected consistency across all six rounds.

Karnataka shooter Tilottama Sen secured second place with 622.6, while Kerala’s Vidarsa K Vinod claimed the third spot with a score of 622.0.

The contest remained tightly packed through the rankings, with a narrow margin of just 0.4 separating the fifth- to eighth-placed shooters. Jharkhand’s Supriya Kumari finished fourth on 621.7, ahead of reigning national champion Priya from the Army Marksmanship Unit, who scored 620.7. Haryana’s Nischal (620.6), Madhya Pradesh’s Ashi Chouksey (620.5) and Punjab’s Sift Kaur Samra (620.4) completed the top eight.

In the men’s 50m rifle prone Trial 1, Aishwary asserted early dominance to take the top position with an impressive score of 629.6. The reigning 50m rifle 3 Positions national champion built a commanding lead with strong opening series and maintained control through the later stages, posting series scores of 105.3, 105.4, 105.7, 104.9, 103.7 and 104.6 to finish 3.2 points clear of the field.

Former world champion Akhil Sheoran finished second with 626.4, while current national champion Swapnil Kusale secured third place on 625.3.

Army shooters Nishan Budha (623.8) and Chain Singh (622.9) placed fourth and fifth respectively. Navy shooter Nikhil Tanwar (621.9), Army’s Babu Singh Panwar (621.6) and Navy marksman Niraj Kumar (620.6) rounded off the top eight.

Meanwhile, in the 25m rapid fire pistol Trial 1, Navy’s Omkar Singh topped the standings after Stage 1 of qualification with a score of 295-14x. Rajasthan’s Bhavesh Shekhawat (292-9x) and Uttar Pradesh’s Ankur Goel (291-10x) occupied the next two positions.

World Championship silver medallist Anish Bhanwala was placed seventh with a score of 286-12x.

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The finals of the 50m rifle three positions (Trial 1) for both men and women will be held on Tuesday, along with the Trial 2 finals of the 50m rifle prone events.