10m Air Rifle Men
The opening event of the ISSF World Cup Stage 5 in Gabala (AZE) will see 78 athletes compete in the men’s 10m Air Rifle event.
Only one of this year’s two previous Gold medalists will compete in Gabala, as 20-year-old Song Buhan of the People’s Republic of China will try to match the 1st place he nailed in New Delhi (IND), shooting alongside his teammates Cao Yifei (29), who won Gold two years ago in Gabala, and Yao Yuncong (21), trying to best the 18th place he obtained in Munich.
Czech Republic’s 17-year-old Filip Nepejchal will also be among the favorites for a spot in the final, after claiming the first World Cup Gold of his career in Baku (AZE) in 2016.
Battling for a spot among the top-8 will also be Hungary’s seven-time World Cup medalist in this event Peter Sidi (38), Japan’s Atsushi Shimada, Bronze medal winner at this year’s World Cup stage in New Delhi, and the 2016 Olympic Silver medalist of the 10m Air Rifle Men event: Ukraine’s 24-year-old Serhiy Kulish.
London 2012 Olympic Gold medalist, Alin George Moldoveanu (34) of Romania will also compete in the event, trying to best the 82nd place he nailed in Munich last month.
The home Azerbaijani team will be represent by Ali Majidli (24) and Gudrat Rizvanov (16), both appearing in the first World Cup stage of their career.
The final is scheduled at 12:45 pm (UTC+4:00) and it will be live streamed on the ISSF official Facebook page, on issf-sports.org and on its Livestream channel.
10m Air Rifle Women
The first competition day in Gabala will close with the women’s 10m Air Rifle final, where Romania’s Laura Georgeta Ilie (24) will go for her second consecutive Gold medal, after dominating this event in Munich last month.
The current number 5 of the World Ranking and holder of World Record, People’s Republic of China’s 19-year-old Shi Mengyao, is going to lead a Chinese team who will also enrol Liu Ruxuan (24) and Peng Xinyi (20), both appearing in their first World Cup stage.
Sisters Jennifer (25) and Seonaid McIntosh (21) will bear the Great Britain’s flag, both trying to enter this event’s final for the first time in their career.
The panel of favorites for a firing point in the final match also includes Pooja Ghatkar (28) of India, Bronze medalist at this year’s World Cup stage in New Delhi, Elaheh Ahmadi and Najmeh Khedmati of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who both climbed on the World Cup podium two years ago in Gabala, and Andrea Arsovic (30) of Serbia, currently ranked 10th in the world.
A total of 70 athletes will compete in the women’s 10m Air Rifle, and the Azerbaijani team will be represent by Zhala Bayramova (22), Khayala Huseynli (23) and Nazrin Salamzade (16).
The final is scheduled at 4:15 pm (UTC+4:00) and it will be live streamed on the ISSF official Facebook page, on issf-sports.org and on its Livestream channel.