Zhang Fusheng wins 25m Rapid Fire Pistol final and hopes for a spot in the Chinese Olympic team

ISSF World Cup Rifle / Pistol · Bangkok, THA

The Chinese athlete beat his teammate Li Yuehong and Vietnam’s Ha Minh Thanh to claim his first world cup medal.

Zhang Fusheng, 22, of the People’s Republic of China, won the 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men final, today, during Day-5 of the 2016 ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in Bangkok (THA).

The young athlete, ranked 22nd in the world, claimed the Gold medal with a final score of 29 hits, collecting his first victory in an ISSF World Cup stage. His best placement so far had been a second place in 2013, in Munich, Germany.

“I was very confident going into today’s final. I have been training a lot and I was not stressed during the match,” said Zhang, who is fighting for a spot in the Chinese Olympic team for Rio 2016.

The People’s Republic of China has indeed collected two Olympic quotas (the maximum allowed for each country in this event) at last year’s ISSF World Cup in Gabala, Azerbaijan, but their Olympic team has not been announced yet.

To finish atop of the podium, Zhang Fusheng bested his teammate Li Yuehong, 26, the 2014 ISSF World Championship bronze medallist ranked 7th in the world.

Li finished in second place with 28 hits, after closing the round with a 3-hit series.

Vietnam's Ha Minh Thanh, 30 - who had never won a world cup medal before - climbed upon the third step of the podium, securing Bronze with 23 hits.

Ha Minh had to pass through three different shoot-offs, today, beating first Emerson Duarte of Brazil (6th with 12 hits) and the third Chinese finalist Zhang Jian (5th with 16 hits), and then the reigning world champion, Republic of Korea’s 25-year old Kim Jin Hong. The world record holder and current world rank #1 placed in 4th with 20 hits.

The medal standings, when 9 out of 10 events of the 2016 ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup have been conducted, sees the People’s Republic of China atop of the table. With 5 Gold, 3 Silver and 3 Bronze medals - and only one event to go - the Chinese team is now unbeatable, as four countries follow with one Gold medal each (Brazil, Denmark, Germany and India).

The World Cup stage will be closed tomorrow, by the 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men Final, the last match of the event. The final round will take place at 1.00 PM (UTC+7), and will be broadcasted live on www.issf-sports.org

Medal standings after 9 out of 10 events: