Manu Bhaker Aims For Historic Third Olympic Medal On Day Of High Stakes For Indian Athletes

Indian shooting star Manu Bhaker is set to launch her bid for a groundbreaking third individual medal at the Olympic Games as she competes in the Women’s 25m Pistol Qualification round in Chateauroux on Friday.

Bhaker, who has already etched her name in Olympic history, first achieved bronze in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol event and then secured a second bronze in the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team event alongside Sarabjot Singh. This accomplishment made her the first Indian to win two medals in the same Games and the first woman shooter from India to secure an Olympic medal.

On Friday, Bhaker, along with teammate Esha Singh, will participate in the Precision Round of the Women’s 25m Pistol Qualification at 12:30 IST. Later, they will return to the range for the Rapid section at 16:30 IST, aiming to advance to the eight-player final.

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In other events, Asian Games medallist Anant Jeet Singh Naruka will compete in the Men’s Skeet event, starting at 13:00 IST.

Mixed Team Quarterfinals

Recurve archers Dhiraj Bommadevara and Ankita Bhakat will face Indonesia’s Diananda Choirunisa and Arif Pangestu in the Mixed Team quarterfinals at 13:19 IST. Both Indian archers will look to redeem their performance after exiting the individual competition.

Moreover, Judoka Tulika Maan a Commonwealth Games medallist, will begin her campaign in the Women’s +78kg Round of 32 Elimination Round against Cuba’s Edalys Ortiz at 13:30 IST.

In athletics, Parul Chaudhary and Ankita will compete in the heats of the Women’s 5000m at 21:40 IST. Shot-putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor, the Asian record holder, will start his Men’s Shot Put qualifying round at 23:30 IST, with high expectations from Indian fans.

Sailing competitor Nethra Kumaran will tackle the challenging conditions in the Race 3 & 4 Women’s Dinghy event at 17:45 IST.

However, the Indian men’s hockey team will conclude their preliminary league phase with a Pool B match against Australia at 16:45 IST.

In badminton, Lakshya Sen will aim for a spot in the medal rounds as he faces Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei in the men’s singles quarterfinals at 18:30 IST.