Mukesh Claims Gold, Tejaswani Secures Silver at Jr Shooting World Cup

Indian shooters Mukesh Nelavalli and Tejaswani Singh capped off a stellar performance at the ISSF Junior World Cup by securing gold and silver medals in the 25m pistol events on Wednesday, propelling India to the top of the overall medals table. The duo's triumphs highlighted India's dominance in the week-long competition held in Lima, Peru, where young athletes from across the globe vied for honours in Olympic and non-Olympic disciplines.

Mukesh, already the junior world champion in the non-Olympic 25m rapid-fire pistol event, delivered a flawless performance in the men's final. Building on his precision stage score of 289 from Tuesday, he fired a superb 296 in the rapid-fire stage to aggregate 585 points and claim the gold. Individual Neutral Athlete (AIN) Aleksandr Kovalev, who had earlier won gold in the 25m rapid-fire pistol, settled for silver with 577 points.

Fellow Indian Sahib Choudhary ensured a podium finish for the host nation by taking bronze with 573 points. In the women's 25m pistol, Tejaswani, who had previously triumphed at the Junior World Cup in Suhl earlier this year, dominated qualification with a score of 580 before scoring 30 in the final to earn silver. AIN's Aleksandra Tikhonova topped the event with 33 points for gold, while Italy's Alessandra Fait secured bronze with 28.

India's medal haul underscored their rising prowess in international shooting, finishing atop the table with 19 medals in Olympic events—six gold, eight silver, and five bronze. AIN shooters placed second with 10 medals (four gold, two silver, and four bronze), followed by Italy in third with five (two gold, two silver, and one bronze). The country added further accolades in non-Olympic categories, including two gold, two silver, and three bronze in the 50m rifle prone (men and women) and men's junior 25m pistol individual. Other Indian finalists, such as Naamya Kapoor (fourth with 21 points) and Riya Shirish Thatte (fifth with 16), showed promise despite missing the podium.

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The competition's concluding day also featured intense action in the trap mixed team junior final, where Czech pair Tereza Zaviskova and Tomas Nantl narrowly defeated compatriots Lea Kucerova—Tuesday's women's trap junior gold medallist—and Kamil Bednar 39–38 for the title. In the bronze medal match, Spain's European junior champions Irene Del Rey Ruiz and Isaac Hernandez outlasted Italy's Sofia Gori and Luca Gerri 7–6 in a sudden-death shoot-off after a 40–40 deadlock. Across seven days, eight countries claimed medals, with five—India, AIN, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Spain—leading the pack.

This event serves as a crucial platform for emerging talents ahead of future Olympics, emphasising precision, mental fortitude, and international collaboration in the sport.

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