Indian shooter Arjun Babuta narrowly missed out on a medal in his debut Olympics on Monday, finishing fourth in the men’s 10m air rifle competition. Despite a strong start, the pressure of the moment proved too much for the 25-year-old.
Babuta began the final with impressive scores of 10.7, 10.2, and 10.5, placing him in fourth position. A 10.4 in his fourth attempt briefly lifted him to third, and he concluded the first series with a solid 10.6.
In the second series, Babuta continued his strong performance with scores of 10.7, 10.5, and a near-perfect 10.8 in the second shot of the first elimination series.
This outstanding effort propelled him into second place, reducing the gap between him and world record holder Chinese Sheng Lihao to a mere 0.1 point.
Arjun Babuta finishes 4th. Was very close to a medal finish, but a great effort nonetheless! 👏🏽👏🏽#JeetKiAur | #Cheer4Bharat pic.twitter.com/DmQjyw5WSO
— Team India (@WeAreTeamIndia) July 29, 2024
However, Babuta’s form faltered in the crucial moments, and a 9.5 in response to Croatia’s Miran Maricic’s 10.7 dashed his hopes of securing a podium finish.
Babuta’s total score of 208.4 was not enough to earn him a medal.
Sheng Lihao claimed the gold with an Olympic record of 252.2, while Sweden’s Victor Lindgren took silver with a score of 251.4, and Croatia’s Miran Maricic (230) secured the bronze.
