SINGAPORE – The National School Games' (NSG) B division shooting competition started with a bang as Xinmin Secondary School's Andrew Khoo took gold in the men's 10m air pistol at the Safra Yishun Indoor Air Weapon Range on Monday (April 4).

The 15-year-old finished his 60-shot routine in style, scoring a whopping 554 points and hitting 10 inner-10s in the process.

Competing in his first NSG, Khoo rose to the occasion and was clinical in front of the target – his tally was four points higher than last year's gold medal-winning score.

However, as he had shot in the second of three sessions, Khoo had to endure a three-hour wait to find out if it was enough to secure gold.

Said Andrew: "I felt nervous when I was shooting because my competitors were mostly older than me and I was unsure how well they could shoot. This win means that I have achieved one of my goals in my shooting journey."

The seven-hour competition was held across three sessions where 64 shooters were grouped by schools and separated by empty lanes in line with safe management measures.

Shooters from the Singapore Sports School (SSP) completed the podium with Adrian Osman and Rayfield Tay finishing second and third with scores of 548 and 547 respectively.

The duo's scores, along with that of teammates Eugene Kek and Maldon Then, helped SSP clinch the team gold with 1,633 points, 40 ahead of second-placed West Spring Secondary School.

SSP coach Foo Peilin, 36, was delighted with the team "as they didn't have a good start" but "fought all the way until the very last shot".

The competition continues until Thursday (April 7).