Doha, Qatar: Individual Neutral Athlete (INA) Dmitrii Pimenov produced a sensational performance to win the men’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions gold medal at the ISSF Rifle, Pistol and Shotgun World Championships Doha 2026 yesterday, setting a junior world record.
The Russian shooter scored 362.8 points to etch his name in the record books.
Pimenov’s was later congratulated by Russian President Vladimir Putin who commended the 21-year-old's effort.
“Congratulations on your triumph at the 2026 World Cup. You demonstrated high skill, excellent preparation, and a will to win, prevailed over experienced opponents, and wrote another bright page in the history of Russian target shooting,” President Putin’s message, posted on Kremlin’s official web site, read.
Pimenov only finished fifth in qualifying, so any podium finish would have been considered a major success. Pimenov, however, exceeded expectations, finishing ahead of Slovakia’s Patrik Jany (357.2) and India’s Niraj Kumar (346.5) in the gold medal race.
The final also decided three Olympic quota places for the LA28 Games, with Pimenov, Kumar and Norway’s Jon-Hermann Hegg securing places for their respective National Olympic Committees.
Although Jany finished second, he could not claim another Olympic quota place after having already secured one in the men’s 10m Air Rifle event. As a result, the third quota place went to Hegg, who finished fourth with 335.9 points.
India’s Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar finished fifth with 323.7 points, followed by Croatia’s Petar Gorsa (313.0), France’s Romain Aufrere (302.1) and Switzerland’s Jan Lochbihler (300.8).
Meanwhile, Qatar’s shooters remained in contention in the trap competitions at the ISSF World Championship in Doha, with one round of qualification remaining.
The men’s team, comprising Angelo Scalzone, Nasser Ali Al-Hemaidi and Mohammed Al-Rumaihi, were placed 11th with 279 points, while Scalzone was fifth in the individual standings with 97 points.
In the women’s team qualification, Kholoud Hassan Al-Khalaf, Metha Hamad Albinali and Ray Bassil placed 10th with 254 points. Al-Khalaf was Qatar’s best-placed shooter in the individual standings, sitting 15th with 90 points ahead of the final round.
