Maheshwari narrowly falls short of claiming the skeet gold medal but secures her place in the upcoming Olympics

Today, Maheshwari Chauhan secured India’s 21st quota allocation in shooting for the forthcoming Paris Olympics by clinching the silver medal in the women’s skeet event on the culminating day of the ultimate Olympics qualification championship for shotgun disciplines in Doha.

Maheshwari, debuting in her inaugural ISSF final, yielded 3-4 to Chile’s Francisca Crovetto Chadid in a shoot-off for the gold after both achieved 54 hits in the 60-shot final. It marks India’s second Paris quota allocation in women’s skeet. “I am elated. Countless hours of dedication have led to this moment. Though the shoot-off outcome disappoints me slightly, the overall journey has been immensely gratifying,” expressed Maheshwari.

The day commenced with the Indian leading the qualification standings, yet a final round score of 23 relegated her to the fourth position for the six-shooter final. Nonetheless, her total of 121 set a new national record.

Considering Chadid’s prior attainment of a quota place in earlier contests and the ineligibility of China’s Jiang Yiting, the sixth qualifier, due to her nation’s exhausted quotas in the event, Maheshwari’s contention narrowed down to three others — Kazakhstan’s Assem Orybay, Azerbaijan’s Rigina Meftakhetdinova, and Sweden’s top qualifier, Victoria Larsson.

During the initial elimination stage (after 20 shots), the Indian stood in second place behind Chadid, having missed two targets.

Orynbay was the first to exit the competition, and Maheshwari’s quota was solidified after Rigina’s departure. Victoria secured the remaining quota.

This development likely eased the tension as Maheshwari exhibited resilience as the final unfolded, narrowing the gap with the frontrunner after 50 shots. Subsequently, Maheshwari had three opportunities to claim the gold, but alas, it eluded her grasp, as she missed her mark entirely in the third shoot-off round, conceding the gold to Chadid.