RP women bag bronze in Asian skeet

Displaying nerves of steel, the Philippine women’s shooting squad refused to back down against their world-class rivals, clinching the bronze medal in the finals of the women’s skeet team event at the close of the 2007 Asian Clay Shooting Championship at the PSC-PNSA Shooting Range, BuCor Compound in Muntinlupa City.

Jade de Guzman, Ma. Theresa Lara and Marissa Floreindo combined for 154 birds to bag the bronze behind China and Thailand and hand the lean but mean RP delegation its second bronze medal in the week-long shootfest backed by the Philippine Sports Commission, Pagcor, Nike, Coca-Cola and Renaissance Hotel, the official hotel.

The 26-year old De Guzman, who won a silver in last year’s Sporting Clays National Championship in Taytay, Rizal behind Ma. Theresa Lara’s golden feat, survived a difficult three-way shootout in the final round, and from there climbed to fifth in the finals to lead the Filipinas’ haul with a 61. 

The 34-year-old Lara, meanwhile, downed 59 targets and Floreindo, the newest member of the team, had a 34 to complete the team’s bronze finish.

China, fresh from sweeping all four golds staked in the double trap event, capped its domination of the week-long event after collecting three more golds here.

Tang Yu, Shi Hongyan and Xie Qing combined for 193 targets to rule the women’s skeet, with Thailand settling for the silver with a 177 behind the trio of Imprasertuk Isarapa (62), Sritanyarat Dawisa (61) and  Sut-arporn Nutchaya (54).

The Chinese earlier completed a gold-silver finish in the women’s individual skeet after Tang and Shi won the top two places with a 90 and 88, respectively, while Li Xu ruled the men’s side with a 146, relegating Masuod Hamad of Qatar, who downed 145 targets, and  Kuwait’s Almutari Zaid, who had a 143, to the silver and bronze.

In the men’s team skeet, Kuwait proved unbeatable, running away with the gold medal with a 357 that stopped China from racking up another win.

Habib Saud led the Kuwaiti’s charge with 121, Zaid had a 120 and Aldaihani Hazaa downed 116 targets to secure the gold.

The Chinese, who settled for a silver this time, drew 123 birds from Li, but a couple of 116s from Wang Ying and Xi Guang pulled down their total to 355, two birds behind Kuwait. Qatar took the silver with a 350.