Shooting-Steady start to the Reitz 25-meter quick prize defense

TOKYO, Aug 1 (Reuters) – German Christian Reitz began his well-established Olympic defense at the men’s 25-meter shotgun event on Sunday and finished third after the first qualifying round of the Asaka shooting range.

Among the top seven were also Frenchman Jean Quiquampoix and Chinese Li Yuehong – who won silver and bronze in Rio five years ago – giving a sense of deja vu.

The shooters return to shoot another 30 shots in the second stage on Monday, with the top six advancing to the finals.

The Frenchman Clement Bessaguet and Quiquampoix shared 297 points at the top, but Bessaguet was the first to lead the landowner with two hits in the X-ring.

Reitz, with a qualifying world record of 593, was only one point behind.

“I had a small problem with the stability of the arm and after the shot the gun moved a little more than normal,” the German, who also won a bronze at the 2008 Beijing Games.

“It was harder to adapt it to the next target, so 296 is a great result.”

China’s Li (292) was just outside the cut-off line in seventh and will have to push himself on Monday in the second stage to reach the finals.

Citizen and world champion Lin Junmin ranked fifth between fourth-placed South Korean Han Dae-yoon and sixth Pakistani Ghulam Mustafa Bashir.

London Championship champion, Cuban Leuris Pupo, who is currently eighth, also needs an improved second stage to stay on course to win his second Olympic medal.

The 44-year-old scored 98 and 99 in the first two segments, but only succeeded in 93 in the third when he had to shoot two sets of five shots, each within four seconds.

“It could have been a better result. I think I had more to give,” Pupo said.

“I have a little more pressure because I’m in the sixth Olympics, and my responsibility to the Cuban people.”

Reported by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; provided by Lincoln Feast.

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