Shooter Mehuli Ghosh came close to winning India its first Youth Olympics gold on Monday, October 8 only to finish with a silver in the 10m Air Rifle event in Buenos Aires.
18-year-old Ghosh, Commonwealth Games 2018 silver medalist, raised hopes of finishing on the top step of the podium after ending the qualifying at the top spot with a total of 628.1, well clear of second-placed Wang Zeru of China.
Ghosh was leading for the most part of the closely-contest final. She was 0.8 clear of eventual gold medalist Stephanie Laura Scurrah of Denmark before the last two shots.
The Indian shooter widened the gap with a 10.4 but shot an agonising 9.1 to end up with a total of 248, which was 0.7 lesser than Scurrah's tally.
Silver Streak for #TeamIndia as Mehuli Ghosh brings home #ShootingSport Silver in Women's 10m Air Rifle at the @youtholympics Games #BuenosAires2018! Finishes 2nd behind Stephanie Luara of Denmark with 248.0 points. A well deserved medal! Kudos @GhoshMehuli ?#IAmTeamIndia ?? pic.twitter.com/IZwPJ8lEQN
— Team India (@ioaindia) October 8, 2018
Similarly, Ghosh lost the Commonwealth Games gold earlier this year in Gold Coast. She had shot 9.9, 0.4 than gold medalist Martina Lindsay Veloso of Singapore in the shoot-off after both the shooters were tied on 247.2.
IBTimes, India has compiled a list of reactions to Ghosh's sub-10 shot in the 10m Air Rifle final. Check them out below.
9.1 - final shot
— Hari Priya CR (@cr_hariPriya) October 8, 2018
?
Mehuli Ghosh takes SILVER #YouthOlympics
Silver 9.1 on final shot for @GhoshMehuli . Ouch
— Digvijay Singh Deo (@DiggySinghDeo) October 8, 2018
True. Somehow this silver just didn't feel good because she was leading at many points and esply at the crucial moment and yet she managed to lose that top spot. Memories of that Commonwealth games final shot of Mehuli ghosh came rushing back to my mind.
— srinath (@srinath245) October 8, 2018
My mantra was always 'Till The Last Shot' today again she will learn the hard way how it is relevant in sports . Nonetheless @GhoshMehuli you have done it.. Congratulations for Youth Olympic Silver . @youtholympics @IndiaSports @OGQ_India @BoriaMajumdar @Mallcom_India
— Joydeep Karmakar OLY (@Joydeep709) October 8, 2018
Last shot and Mehuli is a story. Cwg and now youth Olympics. Will be redeemed God willing in Tokyo 2020.
— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) October 8, 2018
Earlier on the opening day of the third Youth Olympic Games (Sunday), Tushar Mane opened the country's account by bagging a silver in the men's 10m Air Rifle event.
Mane, who qualified third for the final, shot 247.5 to win the silver while Grigorii Shamakov took the gold with 249.2.
Tababi Devi doubled India's medal tally later in the day by winning the country's first Olympic medal in judo.
The Asian cadet champion from Manipur lost 11-0 in the final of women's 44kg category to Venezuela's Maria Giminez.
India, with three silvers, has already surpassed the medal count from last edition of the Youth Games which was held in Nanjing.
The Asian country had won two medals — a silver and a bronze at the 2014 Youth Olympics.
