Esha Singh, Manu Bhaker and Divya Thadigol Subbaraju won India’s second gold medal at the ISSF World Championship in Doha, Qatar, after combining for 1,761-68x in the women’s 25m pistol team event on November 10. Esha led the Indian trio with 590-25x, followed by Manu Bhaker with 587-24x and Divya with 584-19x. South Korea finished second with 1,748-66x, while Vietnam took bronze with 1,745-54x. Esha and Manu also qualified for the individual final, but finished fourth and eighth respectively. The result meant India did not secure an LA 2028 Olympic quota from this event, while South Korea, Vietnam and China claimed the three available quota places.

Esha Sets The Pace

Esha produced the highest score among the Indian trio, registering 292 in Precision and 298 in Rapid. Her Rapid performance included series of 100, 98 and 100. Manu contributed 587 after scoring 289 in Precision and 298 in Rapid, while Divya added 584 after recording 289 in Precision and 295 in Rapid. Their combined 1,761-68x gave India a 13-point advantage over South Korea.

The detailed scores underline the consistency of the Indian trio. Esha shot 97, 96 and 99 across her three Precision series before producing 100, 98 and 100 in Rapid. Manu recorded 96, 96 and 97 in Precision, followed by 99, 99 and 100 in Rapid. Divya posted 97, 98 and 94 in Precision and 98, 99 and 98 in Rapid. The three performances combined to deliver India’s second gold medal of the championship.

Manu Misses Podium

The team victory was followed by contrasting results in the individual competition. Esha finished third in qualification with 590, while Manu placed sixth with 587 to join her in the eight-shooter final. Divya finished 10th with 584 and missed out on the final.

In the final, Manu finished fourth with 27 hits, while Esha ended eighth with 11 hits. South Korea’s Yang Jiin won gold with 44 hits, setting a new world record. Vietnam’s Trinh Thu Vinh took silver with 43, while China’s Zhang Yueyue won bronze with 34. The three medallists also secured LA 2028 Olympic quota places for their respective National Olympic Committees.

India’s Doha Campaign

The women’s 25m pistol team gold was India’s second gold medal at the championship. Earlier, Ravinder Singh, Saurabh Chaudhary and Amanpreet Singh won the men’s 50m pistol team title, with Ravinder also claiming individual silver. Jaypal Malviya won silver in the men’s 10m air pistol, while Niveditha Veloor Nair secured bronze in the women’s 25m standard pistol. Elavenil Valarivan, Sonam Maskar and Shambhavi Kshirsagar also won silver in the women’s 10m air rifle team event.

India added another medal on November 10, when Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Akhil Sheoran and Niraj Kumar won bronze in the men’s 50m rifle 3 positions team event with 1,751-91x. Czechia won gold with 1,754-92x, while Norway took silver with 1,752-81x. The ISSF World Championship in Doha runs until November 14, with further individual and team events still scheduled.

The Logical Indian’s Perspective

Esha, Manu and Divya’s gold shows how individual performances can come together to produce a collective achievement at the highest level. The result also offers an important lesson about elite sport: a team can win gold even when individual outcomes later fall short of the podium. Manu and Esha’s fourth- and eighth-place finishes should therefore be viewed alongside their contribution to India’s team victory, rather than in isolation. As India prepares for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, how can stronger support systems help athletes turn such performances into sustained success?

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Logical Indian (@thelogicalindian)