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Italy's Niccolo Campriani added a second gold medal to his 2016 Summer Olympics tally, beating Russia's Sergey Kamenskiy to win the men's 50-metre rifle three positions final on Sunday.
Campriani left it until the final shot, finishing with a 9.2 to beat his opponent by just 0.3 points. His total of 458.8 was an Olympic finals record.
Alexis Raynaud of France took the bronze medal, finishing more than 10 points behind the top two. Here's a look at the medal winners, complete with their scores:
| Gold | SIlver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|
| Niccolo Campriani (ITA) | Sergey Kamenskiy (RUS) | Alexis Ranaud (FRA) |
| 458.8 | 458.5 | 448.4 |
Kamenskiy stole the show during the qualification round, setting a new Olympic record with a score of 1,184-67x to take the top spot and firmly establish himself as the favourite for the gold.
The Russian set the world record last year and shot a full seven points better than Daniel Brodmeier and Ole Kristian Bryhn, who both managed 1,177.
But Kamenskiy also set a new Olympic record in qualification for the 50 metres rifle prone final, and as shared by PHSports LiveScores, that event did not end well for him:
Matt Emmons of the U.S. failed to qualify for the final, as he finished in 19th place with a score of 1,169.
Campriani took the early lead in the final, hoping to add a second gold medal to his tally after winning the 10 metres air rifle competition, but Raynaud sat right on his tail during the early stages of the kneeling stage.
Kamenskiy completed an impressive comeback in the three series of the prone stage, and entering the standing stage, he and Campriani were tied at 310 points each. The Russian briefly took the lead before Campriani pulled it back, and it all came down to the final shot.
Campriani hit a 9.2 and Kamenskiy managed only an 8.3, sending the fans of the Italian into a delirium.
WVURifle, who played a big part in his training, were among the many to congratulate him:
For Kamenskiy, it's another blow, as he once again failed to live up to his status as favourite. He did at least add a medal, though, which is a far better result than the one he put up in the 50 metres rifle prone.
Shooting continued Friday at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro with medals being handed out in both the men's 50-meter rifle prone and the women's skeet events.
The men kicked off the day's action with Germany's Henri Junghaenel taking gold and setting an Olympic final record in the process.
Here is a rundown of Friday's shooting results thus far and a recap of the events that saw more Olympic hardware awarded.
| Place | Athlete | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Henri Junghaenel | Germany | 209.5 |
| Silver | Kim Jonghyun | South Korea | 208.2 |
| Bronze | Kirill Grigoryan | Russia | 187.3 |
| 4 | Sergey Kamenskiy | Russia | 165.8 |
| 5 | Vitali Bubnovich | Belarus | 144.2 |
| 6 | Marco de Nicolo | Italy | 123.6 |
| 7 | Niccolo Campriani | Italy | 102.8 |
| 8 | Attapon Uea-Aree | Thailand | 80.8 |
Junghaenel entered Rio as the world record holder in the final of a men's 50-meter rifle prone event, and he added an Olympic final world record to his resume with a score of 209.5 to take gold.
The German edged out South Korea's Kim Jonghyun, who finished just 1.3 points behind him at 208.2, while Russia's Kirill Grigoryan was a distant third at 187.3 to win bronze.
SZ-Online.de provided a photo of the 28-year-old Junghaenel following his golden performance:
Junghaenel became the first German to win gold in the event since Christian Klees at the 1996 Atlanta Games, and he is now the fourth man hailing from Germany to do it overall.
While Junghaenel is from Deutschland, much of his development as a shooter occurred in the United States.
He was a multitime All-American at the University of Kentucky, and the NCAA congratulated its former star on his huge accomplishment:
The gold medal is the first of any kind in Junghaenel's Olympic career, and it was made even more impressive by the fact that the field included Italy's Niccolo Campriani, who won gold in the 10-meter air rifle competition this year and silver at the 2012 London Games.
Campriani was a non-factor in the rifle prone, however, and it was Junghaenel who stole the show with an Olympic performance for the ages.
| Place | Athlete | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Medal Match | |||
| Gold | Diana Bacosi | Italy | 15 |
| Silver | Chiara Cainero | Italy | 14 |
| Bronze Medal Match | |||
| Bronze | Kimberly Rhode | United States | 15 |
| 4 | Wei Meng | China | 15 |
A pair of Italians topped the podium in women's skeet shooting Friday, as Diana Bacosi beat out countrywoman Chiara Cainero in the gold-medal match.
Bacosi scored a narrow 15-14 victory over Cainero, and Angelo Mangiante of Sky Sports tweeted a photo of their celebration:
The medal was the first of Bacosi Olympic career and second for Cainero, as she previously took gold in skeet at the 2008 Beijing Games.
Perhaps the biggest story of the event, though, was American Kimberly Rode, who won bronze and made history by securing a medal for the sixth consecutive Olympics, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports:
Rhode beat China's Wei Meng on a tiebreaker in the bronze-medal match and now has a medal of each color in skeet, as she took gold in London and silver in Beijing.
She also won two golds and a bronze in the now-defunct double trap, doing so at the 1996, 2000 and 2004 Games.
Rhode is the most-decorated female shooter in the history of the Olympics, and while she hasn't given any indication regarding her future plans, the 37-year-old could potentially add to her record haul in four years at the 2020 Tokyo Games as part of a sport that often favors experience over youth.
Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.
Barbara Engleder of Germany captured the women's 50-metre rifle 3 positions gold medal at the 2016 Olympics Games on Thursday as the athlete fired her way to success in Brazil.
The new champion punched the air and fell to her knees as she bettered her fourth-place finish in the women's 10-metre air rifle event.
The German soldier scored 458.6 in the final to push Binbin Zhang of China into the silver medal position. Compatriot Du Li claimed bronze.
Teenage American prodigy Ginny Thrasher narrowly missed out on the final, unable to add to her gold medal in the women's 10-metre air rifle. She finished in 11th place with 581 points on the board in qualification.
Here is the final standing for the event:
| Place | Athlete | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Barbara Engleder | Germany | 458.6 |
| Silver | Binbin Zhang | China | 458.4 |
| Bronze | Du Li | China | 447.4 |
And now a look at the updated medal count from Rio:
Engleder snatched the gold with her final shot of the competition as she broke Chinese hearts in Rio. The confident German screamed in ecstasy and fell to the floor when she realised she was the champion at the expense of Zhang.
The 33-year-old prevailed by only 0.2 as she bettered her competition by the slimmest of margins in a new scoring system for 2016, taking a newly revised Olympic record as a result.
Engleder had competed in the event at the 2012 Games, placing an impressive sixth, and has consistently challenged for honours over the past decade without winning the coveted Olympic gold medal.
Nina Christen bombed out in the final after impressing hugely in qualification. The Switzerland shooter could only manage a score of 414.8 as she exited in sixth spot.
She was soon followed by Italian Petra Zublasing, who was one of a handful to match Christen's effort during the qualification round.
The medals were to be decided by the eventual champion and chasing rifle shooters from China, but Zhang and Li couldn't produce the accuracy with their final efforts.
Engleder was impressive down the home stretch and dug deep into her knowledge and experience to beat China's top pair.
The German has tasted the finals of the Olympics in previous years, and she produced a steely resolve when it mattered most at the summit.
Li appeared ready to challenge the soldier for gold after her disappointment in the women's 10-metre air rifle when Thrasher edged her 208-207 to steal the gold in Rio's first medal event of the 2016 Games.
Jongoh Jin of South Korea captured the gold medal in the men's 50-meter pistol shooting competition Wednesday at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Vietnam's Xuan Vinh Hoang took silver and North Korea's Song Guk Kim earned a spot on the podium by winning bronze.
In the day's second medal event in shooting, Fehaid Aldeehani, operating under the Independent Olympic Athletes distinction, won gold with a victory over Italy's Marco Innocenti in the men's double trap final. Steven Scott earned bronze by defeating Tim Kneale in a matchup between two British athletes.
Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times noted the triumph would have been the first gold medal for Kuwait, but the suspension of the nation's Olympic committee means it goes to the IOA instead. It's the first gold for the independent group, per TOI Sports News.
Let's check out the complete results from the 50-meter pistol:
| Rank | Athlete | Country | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jongoh Jin | KOR | 193.7 |
| 2 | Xuan Vinh Hoang | VIE | 191.3 |
| 3 | Song Guk Kim | PRK | 172.8 |
| 4 | Seungwoo Han | KOR | 151.0 |
| 5 | Zhiwei Wang | CHN | 129.4 |
| 6 | Vladimir Gontcharov | RUS | 111.0 |
| 7 | Pavol Kopp | SVK | 91.4 |
| 8 | Wei Peng | CHN | 67.2 |
Here are the final scores from the matches for gold and bronze in the double trap:
| Match | Winning Athlete | Losing Athlete | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Fehaid Aldeehani (IOA) | Marco Innocenti (ITA) | 26-24 |
| Bronze | Steven Scott (GBR) | Tim Kneale (GBR) | 30-28 |
And now a look at the updated medal count from Rio:
It's the third straight Olympic triumph in the 50-meter pistol for Jin. He also earned a silver in the event in Athens 12 years ago. He now owns a total of six Summer Games medals, four gold and two silver, as well as a multitude of success at the World Championship and World Cup levels.
His path to victory in Rio was anything but smooth, though. Hoang started to pull away during the first half of the second stage thanks to five consecutive series of 19.3 or better. He would have won gold if he kept that streak alive for two more rounds.
Instead, the Vietnam shooter posted a 18.5 in Series 8 and, even more critically, a 16.7 in Series 9 to leave the door wide open for a Jin comeback. It's certainly no surprise the South Korean star took full advantage to add another gold to his impressive collection.
Jin came up with a clutch finish, posting a 20.6 to get back in contention and then a 19.3 to pass Hoang in the final series.
John Marshall of the Associated Press commented on the late rally:
Hoang is still having a strong Games despite the disappointing finish. He previously claimed gold in the 10-meter air pistol event, and he still got silver Wednesday thanks to a terrific display until the final moments of the final.
Meanwhile, Kim picked up North Korea's first shooting medal of the Olympics.
In the double trap, Aldeehani finished as the top qualifier in the semifinals and then took advantage of a poor showing by Innocenti to capture gold. The Italian posted a 24, tying his lowest score of any round, which allowed the Kuwaiti's 26 to get the win.
Aldeehani was fortunate not to face Scott in the final, though. The British shooter racked up a perfect score of 30 to beat his teammate for bronze. Even Kneale's final score of 28 would have been good enough for gold if he made the final, showcasing the thin line between glory and disappointment.
But it's Aldeehani's day to shine. The 49-year-old veteran had two Olympic bronze medals on his resume, the double trap in 2000 and the trap in 2012, but this is the first time he stood atop the podium.
Ahmed Al Omran of the Wall Street Journal showcased the golden moment:
All told, it was a memorable day at the Olympic Shooting Center. Jin extended his reign of dominance in the 50-meter pistol with a thrilling comeback and Aldeehani made history for the Independent Olympic Athletes, though Kuwait will surely celebrate the moment, as well.
China's Zhang Mengxue shot a 199.4 to take the gold medal in the 10-meter air pistol women's final at the 2016 Rio Olympics on Sunday.
Australia's Catherine Skinner won gold in the women's trap event on her Olympics debut. She beat fellow New Zealander Natalie Rooney by a point.
Earlier, Corey Cogdell took bronze after a dramatic bronze-medal match with Spain's Fatima Galvez that went to a sudden-death shoot off.
Zhang stayed calm amid a spirited challenge from Russian teenager Vitalina Batsarashkina, who took silver with a score of 197.1. Anna Korakaki of Greece was awarded bronze after shooting 177.7 following a tough penultimate round.
Here are the results after Sunday's events:
| Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
| 10-Meter Air Pistol Women's Finals | Zhang Mengxue (CHN) 199.4 | Vitalina Batsarashkina (RUS) 197.1 | Anna Korakaki (GRE) 177.7 |
| Trap Women's Event | Catherine Skinner (AUS) 12 | Natalie Rooney (AUS) 11 | Corey Cogdell (USA) 13+1 |
Skinner built a 9-8 lead with just three targets remaining in the trap final. She eventually sealed the gold-medal win with a 12-11 victory, as Rooney missed twice off her last five shots, according to Rio2016.com.
But first-time Olympian Skinner was eagle-eyed when it counted. She made no mistake on her final target to guarantee finishing first.
The trap event's penultimate meeting had provided a tense finish when Codgell was taken to shoot off by Galvez. The two had tied been tied at 13 hits apiece after 15 targets.
It was Galvez's nerve that broke first in the sudden-death period, allowing Codgell to finish third and earn bronze.
Shooters from Russia, Greece and Mexico qualified for the big event, with the International Shooting Sport Federation providing the full list:
Yet some of the names and countries represented surprised CNN's Digvijay Singh Deo, who noted that many of the marquee candidates had failed to make the cut:
Completely stunned the final eight shooters in the event. All the big names, Arunovic , Goberville, Chaika, Kostevych fall by the wayside
— Digvijay Singh Deo (@DiggySinghDeo) August 7, 2016
The most notable omission from the field was Ukraine's Olena Kostevych, owner of three Olympic medals. But it was Zhang who set the early mark to beat, scoring 119.8. She held a slender, one-point advantage at the halfway stage of the final.
It was surprise package Korakaki who was applying the pressure at the top. Each shooter was performing well to combat the conditions, particularly the strong winds that had to be factored into every shot.
Korakaki faltered when she shot a 9.9 in response to a 10.5 shoot from Russia's Batsarashkina. Those scores flipped the athletes in position for silver and bronze.
Despite her late slip, Korakaki felt her experience at the Youth Olympics helped her handle the pressures of the senior event, according to the ISSF:
With that said, no competitor dealt with the pressure better than Zhang. She shot a 9.5 to stay just ahead of 19-year-old Batsarashkina and take the gold.
