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The 24-year old Olympic Medallist of Beijing secured an Olympic Quota Place to participate in the next Games by outdoing India’s Kumar in a spinechilling duel for Gold.

The new exciting 25m Rapid Fire Pistol final was conducted today, at the ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in Fort Benning, GA, USA.

It was the German finalist Christian Reitz, 24, who won the match with an overall score of 29 hits. The Olympic Bronze medallist of Beijing 2008 finished on the highest step of the podium by passing through a breathtaking match, and only after outdoing India’s Vijay Kumar in a shoot-off for Gold by 4 to 1 hits.

Reitz, who had never won an ISSF World Cup medal with the new final format, also secured an Olympic Quota Place, a pass to the next 2012 Olympic Games in London.

“This is the first Quota for Germany in this even. An Olympic Quota and a Gold medal, what should I ask more!” The gold medal winner said, with a smile on his face.

“It has not been an easy final. It’s very hot, here in Georgia, and the light conditions are a little bit complicate, in comparison with other world cups.” The German shooter said.

“I have been working a lot to prepare for this competition, but this is just the first step. We will keep on competing untill the end of the season.” Reitz concluded.

Following him, India’s 25-year old Vijay Kumar secured the Silver medal, as well as the second Olympic Quota Place to be awarded today, with an overall score of 29 hits + 1 hit in the shoot-off, after scoring two great series of five hits during the final.

The Bronze medal went to China’s Ding Feng, 24, the winner of last year’s World Cup final round here in Fort Benning. The young Chinese shooter had qualified in the lead with 589 points, but with the new final format qualification points are not counting in the final. With 24 hits, he shot-off against Kumar, eventually finishing then in third place, just one hit far from the Olympic Qualification.

Today’s only finalist already qualified to participate in the Games, Cuba’s Leuris Pupo, left the match after the sixth competition series, with 20 hits, while the first two finalists who had to live the shooting line were Josef Fiala of Czech Republic (sixth with 10 hits) and Korea’s Kim Daeyoong (fifth with 16 hits).

The 22-year old beat Germany’s Pfeilschifter in a shoot-off for Gold. The young Chinese record holder had won her first ISSF medal here in Fort Benning, one year ago.

“This is a magic place for me! All started here, one year ago.” the winner of today’s 10m Air Rifle Women event, China’s Yi Siling, said right after the match.

Entering the match in fifth place with 398 points, one point behind her leading opponents, she moved up in the scoreboard by shooting 104.0 points in the final.

Closing the final match with an overall score of 502.0 points, she had to shoot-off against Germany’s ISSF multi-medallist Sonja Pfeilschifeter – outdoing her 10.3 to 10.1 – to climb upon the highest step of the podium.

Yi had won the ISSF World Cup held here in Fort Benning one year ago, and that victory – her first ISSF Gold medal – boosted her for the upcoming 2010 ISSF World Championship, where she won the title by setting a new, great final world record of 505.6 points.

“I am focusing on the next championship now, I would like to win the next World Cup as well!” the 22-year old said. The next ISSF World Cup Stage will be held in Munich, Germany, where the young athlete won the World Championship last year, qualifying to participate in the next 2012 Olympic Games in London.

“Winning the Games is my highest goal. Of course it won’t be easy, and I don’t even know how many selection matches I still have to go through before I can say I made the Olympic team. But I will try my best!”

While Germany’s Pfeilschifter was awarded the Silver with 502.0 + 10.1 points after the shoot-off, the Bronze medal went to Italy’s Petra Zublasing, 21, who finished on the podium with 501.8 (399+102.8) points. Zublasing also secured an Olympic Quota Place, a pass to the next 2012 Olympics in London.

The second and the third Olympic Quota Places to be awarded by the ISSF at today’s final were secured by Denmark’s Stine Nielsen – who finished in fourth with 500.9 (399+101.9) points – and by Austria’s Stephanie Obermoser – fifth with 500.8 (398+102.8) points.

Today’s was the Chinese athlete’s 23rd medal out of 24 World Cup participations. Italy’s Campriani closed in second, while the Olympic Quota Places went to Beyeler (SUI) and Kamenskiy (RUS).

China’s Olympic multi-medallist Zhu Qinan, 26, won today’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men event at the 2011 ISSF Rifle & Pistol World Cup in Fort Benning, GA, USA.

The top-ranked Chinese shooter left a few chances to his opponents, today. Entering the medal match in first place, with a qualification score of 1181 points and one point of advantage on his followers, he shot 99.4 points during the final, finishing with 1280.4 points and the Gold medal more than 3 points ahead of the Silver medallist.

Zhu, a 2004 Olympic Champion and 2008 Olympic Silver medallist in Air Rifle events, started shooting the three positions event this year, at the ISSF World Cup held in Sydney last March, where he won Gold as well.

“I want to win the Olympic Games also in the 50m Rifle 3 Positions events!” he said there.

Statistics put him in the spotlights as one of the most successful ISSF World Cup participants of all times: the Chinese shooter has indeed won an impressive total of 23 ISSF World Cup medals (15 Golds, 4 Silvers and 4 Bronzes), since he started shooting in 2003. Every time he competed in an ISSF World Cup stage he finished on the podium but once (his only defiance occurred at the 2004 ISSF World Cup in Bangkok, when he finished 33rd).

Today’s Silver medal went to Italy’s Niccolò Campriani, who finished on the second step of the podium with an overall score of 1277.3 (1177+100.3) points. The 23-year old Italian shooter had won Silver also at the 10m Air Rifle Men final, a couple of days ago.

“I have been working a lot on my kneeling position. So kneeling was ok, but I missed out in the prone.” Campriani commented right after the final.

“Seen my prone score (392 points), I would say today’s overall result is not too bad. And I was able to move up in the final!”

Campriani was followed by Switzerland’s Simon Beyeler, who won the Bronze medal and an Olympic Quota Place with 1276.8 (1180+96.8) points. The 28-year old Swiss athlete, competing since 1996, had never won an ISSF World Cup medal, before.

The two home shooters, USA’s Matthew Emmons and Joseph Hein, finished in fifth and seventh place, today. Emmons, who had started off the final in seventh place, climbed up to the fifth finish by scoring today’s highest final score, 101.2 points, for a total score of 1273.2 points. His teammate Hein, on the contrary, scored today’s lower, 96.4 points, moving down from the fourth to the seventh place with a total of 1271.4 points.

The second Olympic Quota Place awarded today went to Russia’s Alexei Kamenskiy, eighth with a total tally of 1269.2 (1172+97.2) points.

With 1185 days to go, Nanjing has proudly unveiled their rockin’ emblem for the second Summer Youth Olympic Games in 2014.

The 2014 Youth Olympic Games logo has been finally unveiled!

Launched with a grand ceremony, broadcast live on national television to audiences across China, the emblem is bursting with colour and energy in celebration of you – the youth of today.

The clever design also commemorates Nanjing’s rich history by incorporating the famous City Gate in the wording. By using each letter ‘n’ to symbolize an open gate, the emblem conveys a warm ‘welcome’ message, encouraging all future athletes, spectators and audiences from around the world to come together to share in the excitement of the 2014 Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing.

Speaking at the grand launch event, President Jacques Rogge said: “This colourful and contemporary logo is the perfect symbol for Nanjing and China as a whole.  It represents your passion for sport and culture, and the welcoming City Gates symbolise the warmth and friendliness of the Nanjing people.”

He continued: “It also represents the energy of the city and the nation, and it is this vibrancy that will inspire young people around the world to join in the celebrations in 2014.”

On the 10th of February 2010, the 122nd IOC session at Vancouver announced Nanjing as the host city of the second summer YOG, which will be held from August 16th to 28th 2014. The Nanjing 2014 Summer YOG will encompass all 26 sports – including shooting – and will be conducted under the motto “Olympics for the young, by the young.”

“It’s a miracle, I am old, but I will try my hardest to win the London Games!” The Chinese shooter said after winning today’s medal match with 796.7 points, equalling the final world record.

“I will try my hardest to win the next Olympic Games!” the reigning 25m Pistol Women Olympic Champion, Chen Ying, said after winning today’s medal match at the 2011 ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup in Fort Benning, GA, USA.

The 33-year old Chinese shooter secured the brightest medal with a total score of 796.7 points, equalling the current final world record. After entering the final with 591 points, with 4 points of advantage on her closest opponent, she shot 205.7 points in the final, turning out to be unbeatable.

“It’s a miracle!” She commented right after the match “I stopped shooting for one year, and I just came back to shooting. So I did not expect such a record result!” Chen said. This was her second World Cup Gold medal of the season, after her victory at the previous stage in Changwon.

“I am an old shooter, in China, where we start shooting at 13,” the 33-year old said. “So many new young athlete are coming up every year. But I will try to stay in the leas as long as possible. Shooting means all, in my life.”

The Silver medal went to Beijing’s Olympic Silver medallist, Otryad Gundegma, 32, from Mongolia, who finished behind Chen mirroring the final of the 2008 Games. The Mongolian shooter, ranked 17th in the world, moved up from the third place securing the Silver and an Olympic pass for London 2012 with a total score of 789.8 points.

The Bronze medal was taken by India’s Rahi Sarnobat, 20, who surprised everybody  byclimbing up the scoreboard form the eighth to the third place. The young Indian shooter had qualified in last place with 582 points, but then moved up to the podium with an extreme final score of 207.7 points, meaning an average of more than 10.3 points per shot. Next to the Bronze  – her first ISSF medal – Sarnobat also pocketed an Olympic Quota Place, an entrance ticket to the next 2012 Games.

Her teammate, Anisa Sayyed, 30, who had started the match in second place, finished far behind the podium in seventh place, with an overall score of 787.0 (587+200.0 points).