India won both the gold medals on offer, and bagged a silver, in mixed team events on the final day of competition to finish the ISSF World Cup in Munich with a staggering five gold medals, their best performance in a World Cup.
To make it sweeter, the 10m air rifle event saw two Indian teams pitted against each other for the gold medal match-up. Anjum Moudgil and 17-year-old Divyansh Singh Panwar defeated Apurvi Chandela and Deepak Kumar with a comprehensive 16-2 points. The Belarusian pair of Maria Martynova and Ilia Charheika won a thrilling bronze-medal match against Austrian Olivia Hofmann and Alexander Schmirl 16-14.
It was the second successive World Cup gold for Anjum and Divyansh, who had taken the top spot in Beijing too. “This is our second gold in the new format and it has been fun to shoot with Divyansh,” said Anjum.
The two shot a combined 631.9 to top the eight-team standings in the first stage of the finals. Apurvi and Deepak were in second spot with an effort of 630.2.
Saurabh Chaudhary and Manu Bhaker continued to dominate the 10m mixed team air pistol event, winning gold in all three World Cups this year. The teenagers topped in the New Delhi and Beijing World Cups, and also won the Asian Airgun Championships in Chinese-Taipei for four gold medals this season.
{{/usCountry}}Saurabh Chaudhary and Manu Bhaker continued to dominate the 10m mixed team air pistol event, winning gold in all three World Cups this year. The teenagers topped in the New Delhi and Beijing World Cups, and also won the Asian Airgun Championships in Chinese-Taipei for four gold medals this season.
{{/usCountry}}Manu and Saurabh were on target right from round one, topping the 76-team field with a score of 586 and then consolidating in round two with 591. Saurabh shot a 100 in his last series.
They got stiff competition in the gold-medal match against former Olympic champion Olena Kostevych and Oleh Omelchuk of Ukraine. Manu and Saurabh were ahead but Olena and Omelchuk caught up at 6-6. The Indians, however, won the next three series to lead 12-6. Even though the Ukrainians levelled one series and won one, Saurabh and Manu stepped up to win 17-9.
India topped the overall medals tally with five gold medals and one silver, leaving behind China at second place with nine medals — two gold, two silver and five bronze medals.
Apurvi Chandela (10m air rifle women), Rahi Sarnobat (25m pistol women) and Saurabh Chaudhary (10m air pistol men) had won individual gold medals.