AFP
INCHEON, SEPTEMBER 21
SHY teenager Kim Cheong-Yong beat the Olympic and world champion to individual gold as South Korea swept the men’s 10 metre air pistol titles at the Asian Games on Sunday.
The 17-year-old, fourth in the qualifying round earlier, beat a star-studded field in the eight-man final to claim the individual crown to thunderous applause from home fans.
Kim’s hero, South Korea’s Olympic and world champion Jin Jong-Oh, was relegated to third place behind former Olympic gold medallist Pang Wei of China.
Kim, a high school student in Seoul, finished with a score of 201.2, nearly two points clear of Pang’s 199.3 and way ahead of Jin’s tally of 179.3.
Defending champion Lee Daem-Yung finished 13th in qualifying and failed to make the final. India’s Jitu Rai, who won the 50m air pistol title on Sunday, was fifth.
With the team title also in the bag, the hotly favoured hosts finally made a mark on the Incheon ranges after a miserable opening day when China’s pistol shooters won three golds and India the other.
Kim, virtually unknown in shooting circles before this year, first came to attention when he finished second at the Youth Olympics in Nanjing in August.
The youngster, hesitantly addressing his first press conference, said competing with other countries in Nanjing gave him hope of doing well at the Asian Games.
“My hero Jin was there as were the Chinese, so I knew it would not be easy, but I had confidence in my game. Winning the Asiad title is really a dream come true. It was some luck and the blessings of all Koreans that saw me through.”
“There is still a lot to learn from the senior shooters. I just try and follow their advice and see how they train.”
Jin said he was “sad” at not winning the title, but was happy for his compatriot who was a “very promising talent”.
The Korean trio of Kim, Jin and Lee Daem-Yung helped the hosts retain the team gold earlier on Sunday.
China claimed the silver through Pang, Pu Qifeng and Wang Zhiwei, beating India by one point on the count of inner 10s after both teams were level at 1,743.
There was further heartbreak for India when former Commonwealth Games champion Samaresh Jung finished ninth and did not make the final.
