Standing tall to win gold

A feisty comeback at the Senayan Shooting Range saw Martina Veloso adding a fifth gold to Singapore's tally at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Grand Prix in Jakarta yesterday.

The 22-year-old overcame a rough start in the final stage of the women's 50m rifle three positions, which saw her lying fifth out of eight shooters upon completing the kneeling and prone positions.

With just the standing position left, the pressure was piling as she was in danger of being eliminated before the medal match, which was only for the top four finishers.

She said: "It was very hard for me to get my focus back, but I managed to do so in the last position.

"I just told myself I don't have to be at the top right now, all I have to do is reach the top four then qualify for the gold-medal match.

"So I told myself to focus and take it one shot at a time, rather than try to focus on the entire final."

That approach worked like a charm as Veloso came out tops in the standing segment, jumping to first overall with 301.7 points.

She qualified for the medal match with Indonesia's Diaz Kusumawardani (297) and Thai duo Thanyalak Chotphibunsin (296.9) and Supamas Wankaew (296.8).

Compatriot Jasmine Ser finished eighth and did not advance.

Veloso, who won the 10m air rifle and 50m air rifle prone golds at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, topped the medal match with 42 points, ahead of Kusumawardani's 37.5, before going on to beat the home favourite 16-6 in the next round to claim gold.

Veloso, Ser and Lim Yee Xien also took home a bronze in the team event for the 50m rifle three positions, bringing Singapore's total medal tally to 14. Hosts Indonesia are top of the medal table with five golds, eight silvers and a bronze, followed by Singapore (5-2-7) and Thailand (3-3-4).

Veloso said that her results at the Grand Prix show she is moving in the right direction ahead of May's Hanoi SEA Games, where she will compete in the 50m rifle three positions.

The communications undergraduate at the Singapore University of Social Sciences added that competing overseas allows her to learn to use different strategies to cope with high-pressure situations.

Meanwhile, the men's 50m rifle three positions team of See Jun Ren, Marat Veloso and Gai Tianrui narrowly missed out on the bronze after losing 17-15 to Bangladesh's Md Rabbi Hasan Munna, Mohamad Ali and Shovon Chowdhury.

The shooters' campaign continues today with several events, including the mixed team 50m rifle three positions, which will see siblings Martina and Marat team up in a competition for the first time.