Sanjeev Rajput secures India's 8th Olympic quota in shooting with silver

Sanjeev Rajput secured India's eighth Olympic quota in shooting with a silver medal finish in the men's 50m rifle, 3 positions, event at the World Cup here on Thursday.

Thirty-eight-year-old Rajput shot 462.0 in the eight-man finals, finishing second behind Petar Gorsa of Croatia (462.2).

Gorsa won the Olympic quota in air rifle. China's Zhang Changhong clinched the bronze medal.

Rajput, a former Indian Navy marksman from Haryana's Yamuna Nagar, could have won gold but for a poor last shot. This could have been his second World Cup gold after the he won one in 2011.

Rajput had been denied a chance to compete in the Rio Olympics after his quota had been exchanged for a shotgun spot by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI).

The Navy marksman staged a remarkable comeback after a poor start in the finals.

His first three shots were in the 9s. However, a 8.8 final shot meant he finished behind Gorsa by just 0.2 point.

Rajput had qualified for the final in second place (1,180), ...