Australian shooter Christopher Pitt managed a creditable 14th position in the men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 event at the Rio Paralympics overnight. It was a gutsy effort by the 51-year-old carer from Bundaberg, Queensland, but he was unable to make any headway against the leading group. However, the result was another signpost of the progress he is making since he first represented Australia in 2013 after taking up competitive shooting in 2010.
The gold medal was won by China’s Chao Yang, who set a final record of 198.2 points in his debut appearance at the Paralympics. Yang took control of the final from start to finish, retaining first place as the action progressed.
Ju Hee Lee, of South Korea, finished in second spot, 2.6 points behind Yang, on 195.6 as he went one better than his bronze medal position in this event at London 2012.
The Rio 2016 bronze medal went to Server Ibragimov, of Uzbekistan, who clocked up a score of 172.1 points.
Christopher Pitt’s next event is the Mixed P3-25m Pistol SH1 on Sunday.