Nagoya, Sep 24 (IANS): China produced one of the biggest turnarounds of the shooting competition at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Thursday, recovering from an 11-point deficit to pip Indonesia to gold in the men’s 10m air pistol team event.
Indonesia appeared to have built a commanding advantage after the opening qualification group, with Muhamad Iqbal Raia Prabowo and Sulthanul Aulia Maruf combining for 1,172 points. China’s Bu Shuaihang and Xie Yu managed 1,161, leaving the Chinese team 11 points adrift.
The momentum shifted when Hu Kai took over for China in the second group. He produced a consistent 292 over the first three series, while Indonesia’s Wira Sukmana managed 284, reducing the deficit to just three points.
Hu eventually finished with 582 points. Sukmana mounted a late challenge but needed a 10 with his final shot to secure the gold for Indonesia. He could only manage a nine, finishing on 571.
China and Indonesia ended level on 1,743 points, but the Chinese shooters prevailed on the countback, registering 70 inner tens to Indonesia’s 57. Japan claimed bronze with 1,730 points.
Hu said he had focused on managing the fluctuations of the competition rather than the scoreboard. “There were ups and downs during the match, and when things weren’t going well, I just tried to make adjustments,” Hu said.
The Chinese comeback came on a day when three shooting gold medals were decided. Hu also featured prominently in the men’s 10m air pistol individual final, where Uzbekistan’s Vladimir Svechnikov took the title with 244.3 points. Hu settled for silver, while Bu secured bronze.
China also topped the podium in the skeet mixed team event, with Jiang Yiting and Lu Jianlin combining for 52 hits. South Korea won silver, while India took bronze.
The victory marked Jiang’s third gold medal of the Games. She had already won the women’s skeet team and individual titles on Wednesday, making her one of the standout performers of China’s shooting campaign.
Reflecting on her remarkable medal haul, Jiang said:
“My first Asian Games were in Hangzhou, where I won one gold, one silver and one bronze. This time I made a big step forward, and I’m really satisfied to have won three gold medals,” Jiang said.
The shooting events continued to underline China’s depth across both pistol and shotgun disciplines, while Indonesia’s near-miss in the men’s 10m air pistol team event highlighted the fine margins that decided the medals in Nagoya.
