Damir Mikec came back atop of the ISSF World Cup podium two years after his last medal in this event. His sights are now set on the World Championship: “That's the aim of the season.”
Serbia's 30-year old athlete Damir Mikec won today's 50m Pistol Men final, at the 2014 ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in Maribor, Slovenia.
Currently ranked 20th in the world in this event, the two-time Olympian had won his last world cup Gold in this event back in 2012.
“2013 has been a bad year for me. I missed finals by one point or at the inner-tenths count, and when I made it through I finished in fourth for a few tenths... So it feels great to finally be back atop of the podium.” Mikec said, right after the final.
The Serbian shooter qualified for the final with 562 points, and then scored 194.0 points throughout the medal match, closing the round atop of the scoreboard with a small but determinant margin of 0.1 points on India's Jitu Rai, today's Silver medallist.
“Today's match has been difficult. It has been a bit windy during the qualifications, but I managed it. Then, in the final, I went up and down on the scoreboard from the fourth to the first place. I tried to zero in and I finally made it, by 0.1 points. That's enough to win.” Mikec said, smiling.
“This is a special season.” The winner continued “We're all preparing for the 2014 ISSF World Championship in Granada. At the last World Championship – back in 2010 – I made the final, finishing in eighth place, and I hope this time it will be better.”
“With my sights set on the Championship, I won't be competing in the next ISSF World Cup stage in Beijing: I will head to Granada for a training camp, trying to get ready for the big match.”
The Silver medal went to India's 26-year old finalist Jitu Rai, who pocketed his second world cup silver medal in two weeks with 193.9 points. He had indeed finished on the podium at the previous ISSF World Cup stage in Munich, last week.
Today, Rai beat the reigning world champion, Japan's Matsuda, 38, who followed him on the third step of the podium securing the Bronze medal with 172.9 points.
The 2008 Olympic Champion, Pang Wei of the People's Republic of China, 27, did not make it to the podium, and closed the elimination-style medal match in fourth with 152.1 points. He was followed by his teammate Wang Zhiwei, 25, who had led the morning's qualifications with 572 points, and then finished in fifth with 133.3 points after firing a disappointing 6.9 shot during the medal match.
Russia's Vladimir Gontcharov, 37, placed in sixth with 113.0 points, ahead of Jindrich Dubovy (CZE), seventh with 93.0 points, and of the first-time Ukrainian finalist Viktor Bankin, eighth with 67.2 points.