The 2016 ISSF Shotgun World Cup in San Marino saw the victory of Thailand’s Sutiya Jiewchaloemmit at today’s Skeet Women Final.
The 30-year old shooter, ranked second in the world in this event, claimed Gold beating Italy’s Diana Bacosi in the Gold medal match, with a score of 15+8 to 15+7 hits at the end of a thrilling shoot-off.
Jiewchaloemmit had qualified with 72 out of 75 targets, and then cleared the semi-final with a perfect score of 16 hits, like Bacosi.
During the Gold medal match, she only missed once, on station five, before beating Bacosi in the shoot-off.
The Thai athlete, who finished last year’s ISSF World Cup Series in second, had claimed Gold also at the last world cup stage, in April, during the test event of the Rio 2016 shooting range. Bacosi, a current world record holder and European Games silver medalist, had won her last world cup medal in 2015.
“All the hard work is paying off,” said Jiewchaloemmit, “I have lost a lot medals in finals in the past, but I feel I am finally getting there.”
“Today it hasn’t been easy, with the weather conditions affecting the targets, and the light changing, which caused me problems with the background. But eventually I am really happy of how it ended up.”
“Being my second world cup gold in a row, it gives me confidence on the road to Rio,” she added, “I am going to Rio with no expectations, tough. Even if I won a medal there at the pre-Olympic test event, I know that the conditions will be different at Games’ time. I have to stay focused and move ahead one target at the time.”
The 2015 European Games champion Amber Hill of Great Britain (18) climbed upon the third step of the podium, today, beating the two-time Olympic Silver medalist Wei Ning of the People’s Republic of China (33) in the Bronze medal match.
Hill had scored 12 targets in the semi-final, winning a shoot-off against the second Chinese finalist Wei Meng, to access the medal match. There, she hit 13 clays, entering a breathtaking shoot-off against Wei Ning, which lasted right to the 18th target, when Wei missed leaving the British shooter today’s Bronze.
Wei Meng (26) closed the match in fifth, with 12+6 hits in the semi-final. The second Italian finalist, Chiara Di Marziantonio (20) followed her in sixth place, with 11 semi-final hits.
After four out five events conducted at the ISSF Shotgun World Cup in San Marino, USA leads the medal standings, with 1 Gold and 1 Silver medal. Australia, the Czech Republic and Thailand follow in second with 1 Gold medal each.
The world cup stage will be closed tomorrow, June 10, by the men’s Skeet Final, at 5.30 PM.