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The first Gold medal of the 2010 ISSF World Cup Final went to Russia’s Kira Klimova, winner of the 10m Air Pistol Women event.

The 10m Air Pistol Women event opened the 2010 ISSF World Cup Final in Rifle and Pistol events in Munich, the conclusive World Cup stage of the 2010 seasons.

This was the first final round to take place with the new warm-up and athletes presentation rules. The athletes performed their preparation, sighting time and warm-up, and then they put their pistol down and turned their faces to the spectators, to be presented by the speakers. The first competition shot followed immediately after.

It was Russia’s Kira Klimova to win the 10m Air Pistol Women title. The 27-year old shooter, qualified thanks to a Silver medal won at this year’s World Cup Stage of Fort Benning (USA), placed in first with a total score of 484,7 points.

Qualified in third with 384 points, the Russian shooter climbed up the scoreboard by marking 100.7 points throughout the final round, ending up on the highest step of the podium with a 0.7 points advantage on the Silver medallist, Belarus’ Viktoria Chaika, second with 484.0 points.

Chaika and Klimova fought throughout the first part match, shooting neck and neck since the first competition shot. It was after the fifth shot that Klimova moved up in the lead, thanks to an excellent 10.5 that lifted her on the highest step of the podium.

This has been “the best season” of Klimova’s sport career. Starting from the ISSF World Cup Stage in Fort Benning, where she claimed two Silver medals, she has been climbing up the world ranking, winning the 25m Pistol Women World Title last August, and closing her extraordinary year with today’s 10m Air Pistol Women World Cup.

France’s Celine Goberville (24-year old) winner of the last World Cup stage of the year in Belgrade, placed in third today, securing the Bronze medal with a total score of 483.3 points. Making it into the final in sixth place with 382 points, the young athlete climbed the scoreboard up to the podium by firing the final’s highest score, 101.3 points.

She was followed by the winner of this year’s World Cup stage held in Fort Benning, Kazakhstan’s Zauresh Baibussinova. Baibussinova had started the final match in the lead, with a qualification score of 387 points and a one-point head start on her followers. Kicking-off the final match with a 9.9 shot, the Kazakh shooter lost her advantage on the followers. But it was the second competition shot that pulled her down to the mid of the scoreboard. Firing a frustrating 8.1, the Kazakh shooter landed indeed in fourth place, where she eventually closed the match with a total score of 482.8 points.

Russia’s Liubov Yaskevich, 25, placed in fifth with 480.5 points, followed by this year’s World Champion, the 23-year old Serbian shooter Zorana Arunoivic, who kicked-off her World Cup Final in fourth place, with 383 points, ending then in sixth with 479.9 points.

The 2004 Olympic Champion of Athens, Olena Kostevych of Ukraine, and Australia’s Lalita Yauhleuskaya, closed the match in seventh and eight place, respectively.

Korea’s Kim won the 10m Air Pistol Women final with an outstanding advantage of 7.7 points on her followers. Fang won the second shooting medal for China, while Solorzano secured Guatemala’s first Olympic medal.

Korea’s Kim Jang Mi claimed the first Youth Olympic Gold medal awarded to ladies in shooting events with a total score of 479.2 (378+101.2) points after an outstanding final match.

The 17-year old Korean shooter passed through the qualification rounds with a score of 378 points, making it into the final in the lead. Then, shooting solidly throughout the 10-shot medal match, she landed on the highest step of the podium and was awarded her first international Gold medal.

“Sometimes it’s difficult to keep up with the school, my homework and the trainings, but it pays off! This medal is an injection of motivation for the future!” Kim said after the award ceremony.

“I picked up an Air Rifle, when I first started shooting, a few years ago… but then I tried the Air Pistol: it makes more fun! So I changed to this event, and these are the results!” she continued, “I had won a medal at the 2009 Asian Championship in Doha, but I would never expect to win today’s match!”

“My next Gold is to grab a qualification spot for the 2012 Olympics…. I am dreaming about it! I have seen the Korean Pistol Olympic Champion Jin Jong Oh once… I’d like to train with him, sometimes!” concluded Kim.

Almost eight points behind Kim, China’s Fang and Guatemala’s Solorzano fought till the last shot, and further more, to secure the Silver medal.

The two shooters had a chance to catch the Korean leader, but after the fifth final shot they both fired a series of disappointing shots in the eighth ring, dropping down in the placement.

The duel for the second step of the podium eventually finished in a tied score of 471.5 points, and it was a shoot-off (a single shot tiebreaker) to decide the final placements.

Shooting first, China’s Fang Xue marked an unbeatable 10.8 shot, securing the Silver and leaving the Bronze to Guatemala’s Kate Geraldine Solorzano with a 10.1.

The Guatemalan team celebrated as loud and joyful as possible: Solorzano’s is indeed the first medal ever won by Guatemala in an Olympic event since its first participation in the Games.

Canada’s Danielle Marcotte finished in fourth place, just 6 tenths of a point far from the podium with a total score of 470.9 (374+96.9) points. The 17 year old shooter was ranked third as she fired a great 10.8 on her seventh competition shot, but then dropped down in the scoreboard with a frustrating 8.6 “After shooting that 10.8 I felt extremely nervous. The crowd, the people… I was shaking a little bit!” she confessed after the match.

She was followed by Russia’s Ekaterina Barsukova, 18, who had started in third place with 376 points and eventually landed in fifth with 468.5 points. India’s Ruchi Singh, Italy’s Chiara Marini (17) and Switzerland’s Eliane Dohner (18), the last three finalists, closed the match in sixth, seventh and eighth place, respectively.

The 23-year old shooter claimed her first ISSF medal, overtaking the 2004 Olympic Champion Kostevych and the Bulgarian shooter Boneva to finish on the highest step of the 10m Air Pistol Women podium.

France’s Celine Goberville won today’s 10m Air Pistol Women event at the ISSF World Cup in Rifle and Pistol events in Belgrade (SRB).

Making it into the final round in fourth place with a qualification score of 386 points, Goberville climbed up the scoreboard by firing 101.5 points throughout the medal match. The 23-year old athlete from Bordeaux eventually placed in first with a total score of 487.5 points, winning her first international medal ever.

Bulgaria’s Antoaneta Boneva followed her in second place, securing Silver with a total score of 487.4 points. Also the 24-year old Bulgarian athlete had never won an ISSF medal in this event, before.

The two first time medallists Goberville and Boneva upset the 2004 Olympic Champion, Ukraine’s Olena Kostevych, who landed in third place grabbing Bronze with a total score of 487.3 points. The 25-year old athlete had started the match in the lead with a qualification score of 389 points, firing then 98.3 points during the final and sliding down in the placements.

Belarus’ Viktoria Chaika followed in fourth place with 486.7 points, while Australia’s ace shooter Dina Aspandiyarova closed the match in fifth with 483.5 points.

2004 Olympic Champion Kostevich of Ukraine came back on an ISSF podium after missing since 3 years. The Ukrainian shooter fought right the end against China’s Tong, who placed in second eight tenths behind her.

The 2004 Olympic Champion Olena KOSTEVICH of Ukraine won today’s 10m Air Pistol women competition at the 2009 ISSF World Cup in all events in Munich. The 24-year old shooter entered the final round in the lead with 390 points, and with a final of 99.4 points she closed on the highest step of the podium with a total of 489.4 points. The Ukrainian shooter missed from the highest step of a world cup podium since the 2002 world cup stage in Sydney.

Kostevich had to duel right to the last shot against the winner of this year’s first world cup stage, the Chinese shooter Xin TONG. Tong shot today’s best final, but she could not grab the Gold medal. She had overtaken Kostevich after the ninth shot, but a frustrating last shot of 9.3 points placed her in second. She finished in second secured Silver with 488.6 (385+103.6) points.

Korea celebrated for its third medal won in pistol events here in Munich thanks to 20-year old LEE Ho Lim, who finished in third place with 487.3 (385+99.3) points, winning her second ISSF world cup medal of the season following the Silver medal she pocketed in Changwon last April.

The second Korean finalist, GIM Yun Mi, started the final in third place with a competitive qualification score of 385 points, but she struggled in the final finishing in fifth place with 484.7 points behind India’s Heena SIDHU, fourth with 485.9 points.

TONG Xin from the People’s Republic of China, won the 10m Air Pistol Women final at the ISSF world cup in rifle and pistol events in Changwon, Korea. Entering the final round in the lead with the highest qualification score, she finished in first with a total of 489.4 points (388+101.4). The 26-year old pistol shooter seldom competes in world cup stages, but when she does it she is used to finish on the podium. She had indeed already won an ISSF medal here in Changwon, where she had won a silver at the world cup stage held here in 2005.

Supported by a crowded final hall, LEE Ho Lim of Korea could not make it to the highest step of the podium. The 20-year old shooter entered the final round with one point of disadvantage from the qualification’s leader TONG, and the ten final shots where not enough to fill the gap. LEE finished in second place with an overall score of 488.3 point (387+101.3), securing silver, her second medal within the ISSF World Cup Series frame (she had won a gold medal at the world cup held in Milan in 2005).

Bronze went to the Australian shooter Lalita YAUHLEUSKAYA, probably the most experienced shooter competing in today’s match. The four-time Olympian finished in third place with a total score of 487.8 points (386+101.8), missing to catch up Korea’s LEE by five tenths of a point.

Kazakhstan’s Zauresh BAIBUSSINOVA shot a final of 99.6 points, climbing from the eight place to the fourth, where she placed with 482.6 (383+99.6). LEE Pei Ching of Chinese Taipei closed the final round in fifth place with 482.3 points, preceding Japan’s Yoko INADA (sixth with 480.5 points), and Korea’s KIM Byung Hee (seventh with 479.7 points). The second Chinese finalist WU Yan, winner of yesterday’s 25m Pistol Women Final, placed eighth with 478.7 points.