Air pistol rookie Eunice Khoo wins maiden C Division shooting gold for CHIJ St Joseph’s Convent
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Eunice Khoo of CHIJ St. Joseph's Convent takes a shot during the 10m air pistol girls' event at the NSG C Division Shooting Championships held at Safra Yishun on July 12.
ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
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SINGAPORE – Eunice Khoo picked up an air pistol for the first time just a year ago but, on July 12, the 14-year-old displayed poise and calmness to win a historic gold for CHIJ St Joseph’s Convent’s (SJC) in the girls’ C Division 10m event.
It was a maiden title for the school in shooting against more established rivals in the National School Games, and it came after the Secondary 2 student had to conquer her initial fear of the loud noise when a shot is fired.
She also had to conquer her nerves in the final round, shooting 10.0 points for a 227.5 total to beat Quek Gek Ling from Singapore Sports School (SSP) by 2.2 points at Safra Yishun.
Eunice said: “Last year (my father) introduced me to shooting, but at first I was a bit scared because of the gun sound. After I actually tried it, I took a liking to it so I decided to take up shooting.”
The victory did not come easy, though. She trained four to five days a week – two hours each time – in the lead-up to the Games as part of her ambition of getting into the national team by 2024.
She said: “I’ve been training a lot, so I feel like all my effort and failures for the past year have brought me to this point. So I feel very happy and proud of myself.”
Her personal coach, Fan Xiaoping, an Asian Games double gold medallist for China, was full of praise for Eunice’s calm display.
“Her performance was great. She was persevering towards the end, even with a couple of bad shots. She was able to recover and she was taking control of her shots,” said the 52-year-old.
Eunice Khoo (right) of CHIJ St. Joseph's Convent celebrates with a friend after winning the 10m air pistol girls' event at the NSG C Division Shooting Championships held at Safra Yishun on July 12.
ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
There was even more drama in the boys’ 10m air rifle final, where four shooters – including then leader Matthew Cheong of Raffles Institution (RI) – jumped the gun during the final round.
A warning announcement, after the “load” command was called and before the “start” command, caused the confusion as Matthew ended up fourth because of the penalty.
Instead, it was his teammate Norman Cheng who claimed the title with a final-round 10.3 for a 245.6 total, ahead of Xinmin Secondary School’s Reagan Choo (243.8).
The 14-year-old was in disbelief after the win, and admitted that he was nervous during the final round.
Norman Cheng of Raffles Institution pictured after winning the 10m air rifle boys' event during the NSG C Division Shooting Championships held at Safra Yishun on July 12.
ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
“I just followed what my coach told me to do. I didn’t really think about it. It’s second nature to me and I just shoot,” added the Sec 2 student.
Shooting powerhouses SSP emerged victorious in the boys’ 10m air pistol and girls’ air rifle finals.
The air pistol event went down to the wire, with Daanish Teo and Lian Junhao both scoring 9.1 points in the final round. But Daanish’s overall score won him the gold by 0.1 point.
The girls’ air rifle event saw SSP claiming all top-three places, with Jeslyn Woo edging out Freya Lim 245.7 to 245.3. Lim Yet Kee (233.2) claimed the bronze.
In the overall team competition, RI claimed the boys’ title while Raffles Girls’ School were the top girls.
