Throughout the 13^th annual South Asian Games (SAG) on Tuesday, Indian shooters snatched up almost all medals in the women’s shooting competition with a 19-year-old in the lead. Mehuli Ghosh won gold in the 10M air rifle event, earning a score higher than the world record. However, since the international body of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) does not acknowledge scores from the South Asian Games for the purpose of records, Ghosh’s efforts are not considered a world record.

“As far as I understand, SAG results will not be recognized for record purposes. Only the results of World Cups, World Championships and quota events are considered for record purposes by the ISSF. Moreover, there will have to be an ISSF referee in an event if the results are to be considered for records,” a top NRAI official told PTI. ^[1]

Melhuli Ghosh won gold in the 10M air rifle event by scoring 253.3 in the final, just 0.4 points above the prior world record held by Apurvi Chandela at 252.9 points. Coming up behind Ghosh was Shriyanka Sadangi at 250.8 and Shreya Agrawal at 227.2 points, both winning silver and bronze, respectively. Ghosh is no stranger to such victories since she won silver in the same competition in the 2018 ISSF World Championship and Commonwealth Games and Youth Olympics.

As for the men’s 50m 3P event, Chain Singh snagged gold along with fellow countryman Akhil Sheoran, who won silver. Yogesh Singh and Gurpreet Singh won gold and silver, respectively, in the 25m center pistol event.

South Asian Games

Formerly known as the South Asian Federation Games (or SA Games), the South Asian Games is a bi-annual event where athletes from all around South Asia participate in a variety of competitions. Created in 1983, the first installment of the SA Games was held in Kathmandu, Nepal and includes seven other participating members including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. ^[2] In 2004, the SA Games changed its name to South Asian Games to attract a bigger crowd since officials believed the word “federation” overshadowed the event. The South Asian Games is considered the region’s version of the Olympic Games.

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Sources:

[1] Sportstar – Mehuli Ghosh wins 10m air rifle gold in SAG, India sweeps all medals

[2] Olympic Council of Asia – South Asian Games