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Finals 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men

Eva Friedel (GER) won her first Rifle 3 Positions Gold medal by 0.3 in Maribor

ISSF World Cup Rifle / Pistol · Maribor, SLO

Eva Friedel won her first world cup Gold medal beating China's Olympic Champion Yi Siling at the ISSF World Cup in Rifle and Pistol events in Maribor. Croatia's Pejcic won the Bronze, Slovenia's Dvorsak finished in seventh.

Eva Fridel had been looking for this Gold medal for years.

 

The 29-year old German athlete from Muenstertal started competing back in 1997, and since then she climbed the international rankings. First the European Championship Junior title, in 2004. Then, a spot in the World Championship's final on her home turf, in Munich, in 2010. And, finally, the medals: a Silver at the 2011 World Cup stage in Fort Benning, and a Bronze at the ISSF World Cup Final in Wroclaw, the same year. But not that Gold she had been chasing since her first international competitions.

It came today, in Maribor, Slovenia, at the fourth ISSF World Cup stage of the year. Eva made it to the finals after finishing the qualifications in seventh place, and slowly but constantly climbed up the scoreboard to the top. She closed the kneeling series in third place (305.6 points), and then climbed up in the lead at the end of the prone series (405.2 points), gaining more than a point on her followers.

Chasing her, the reigning air rifle Olympic Champion Yi Siling of China, who finished the kneeling in second place six tenths ahead of Fridel (149.6 points) and then followed her after the prone (304.2 points).

 

The Standing series turned into the stage of their duel: Friedel shooting great 10s, Yi answering shot after shot, with only a few tenths of a point to divide them.

 

Friedel eventually made it by 0.3 points, beating Yi Siling's final score of 453.3 with 453.6 points.

 

“It's great to finally win an ISSF World Cup Gold medal.” Friedel siad.

 

“It has been difficult, today, with that wind during the qualifications. I shot 578 points and I thought I would not even make it through to the final. Eventually, I ended up in seventh, and that was good enough to advance to the next stage. With the new rules, the final starts from zero, and that definitely helped me to climb up to the top.”

 

Following them, it was Croatia's two-time Olympian Snjezana Pejcic who climbed upon the third step of the podium, pocketing today's Bronze medal with 440.7 points.

 

The home shooter Ziva Dvorsak (SLO) finished in seventh with 395.4 points.

 

Find the complete results list and the schedule of the next events at www.issf-sports.org

 

VIDEO - Finals 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men

50m Rifle 3 Positions Men Highlights

20.06.2014

Marco Dalla Dea

 

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