CWG 2018: Shreyasi Singh is India's 12th Gold medallist overall and 4th in the shooting discipline. (Photo: AP)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Shreyasi Singh wont he gold medal in Women's Double Trap Final at CWG 2018
- Shreyasi's Gold was India's 12th in the ongoing Games
- Shreyasi's gold medal was India's fourth yellow metal in the shooting discipline
The Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast is helping a lot of Indian athletes to come into the limelight and get noticed.
26-year-old Shreyasi Singh is one of the relatively unknown Indian athletes who's performance captured the imagination of the country thanks to her Gold medal in the Women's Double Trap event on Day 7 of CWG 2018.
Shreyasi's Gold was India's 12th in the Games and fourth in shooting after Heena Sidhu, Manu Bhaker and Jitu Rai.
Shreyasi called it the "milestone medal of her career", made more special by the fact that shooting will not be a part of the next Commonwealth Games.
"I've got a milestone medal," an excited Singh told PTI after claiming India's 12th gold medal of the ongoing Games in the women's double trap event.
Shreyasi, daughter of former National Rifles Association President Digvijay Singh, had lost him on the eve of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, which threw her campaign into disarray and she finished 6th and 5th in singles and pair trap events respectively. Her grandfather, Kumar Surendra Singh, had also served as NRAI chief.
But she bounced back from that disappointment this year and secured the top spot on the podium. She had won a silver medal at the 2014 Games and also has an Asian Games bronze to her credit. (CWG 2018: Ankur Mittal clinches Bronze medal in Men's Double Trap)
"This is the highest medal of my career, right up there. It is also very special because shooting is not going to be a part of the Commonwealth Games in 2022," she said.
Shooters have been on roll in Commonwealth Games 2018, winning 10 medals, with two Silvers and four Bronze.
Shreyasi secured top spot after beating Emma Cox of Australia in a shoot-off for the first position. Both were tied on 96 but the India shot one more than the Aussie to take away the top honour.
"It would be the one to cherish for a very long time," the Delhi shooter stated.
Shreyasi shot a total of 96 across four rounds (24+25+22+25). Her compatriot Varsha Varman marginally missed out on a Bronze after shooting 86 (21+25+21+19) across the four series. Cox grabbed second position while Linda Pearson of Scotland finished third to take home a bronze medal.
This was India's second medal of the day after Om Mitharwal bagged a Bronze in Men's 50m Pistol event.
Asked if she felt the jitters in the shoot-off, Shreyasi said, "I was definitely nervous but at the same time confident. Does that make sense?"
"Actually I was prepared for a fight, I was not going to give up no matter what. I would have fought till whatever time it was necessary to get this medal. If you ask me what I feel right now, it is pure happiness," she said.
Shreyasi, who is inspired by 2004 Athens Games silver-medallist and current sports minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, said despite the close finish she was satisfied with her performance.
"My performance today was definitely very good. I am quite satisfied with how things went. It's been a great day at work," she said.
At the 2014 Games, she arrived in Glasgow with a nagging back problem but still managed to claim a silver.
By that yardstick, she had a smooth build-up to these Games, securing a silver medal in the Commonwealth Championships in November last year.
"I am just happy," said the markswoman, who is as adept at dishing out Mughlai cuisine as shooting down targets.
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