Oh Ye-jin 'First Shooting Gold Medal Hit'... Kim Ye-ji Silver Medal [Paris Olympics]

New Olympic Record in 10m Air Pistol
First Medalist in Women's Event Honored
Day Two of Shooting Competition: 1 Gold, 2 Silver Medals

Oh Ye-jin (IBK Industrial Bank) delivered the first gold medal news in the shooting event at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Oh Ye-jin is cheering after securing the gold medal in the women's 10m air pistol final at the Paris Olympics. [Ch?teauroux (France)=Yonhap News]

On the 28th (local time) at the Ch?teauroux Shooting Center in France, she won the gold medal in the women's 10m air pistol final by scoring an Olympic record of 243.2 points. She became the first to reach the top in the women's 10m air pistol event on the Olympic stage. Following the silver medals won by Park Ha-jun (KT) and Geum Ji-hyun (Gyeonggi Provincial Office) in the 10m mixed air rifle event the previous day, this is another valuable medal in shooting. Kim Ye-ji (Imsil County Office) competed fiercely with Oh Ye-jin until the end and hit the silver medal with 241.3 points.

This is the first time since the 2012 London Games, when Jin Jong-oh (gold) and Choi Young-rae (silver) won medals in the 50m pistol event, that Korean shooters have stood together on the Olympic podium. Additionally, Oh Ye-jin set a new Olympic final record for Korean athletes for the first time in 8 years since Jin Jong-oh at the 2016 Rio Games in the 50m pistol event. Shooting has earned one gold and two silver medals in the first two days since the opening of the Paris Games.

The women's 10m air pistol final format involves eight shooters firing 10 shots first, then shooting two shots each with the lowest scorer eliminated one by one. The maximum score per shot is 10.9 points. Oh Ye-jin showed good form by scoring a high 10.7 points from the first shot. She continued with high scores in the 10-point range for four consecutive shots, including 10.8, 10.2, and 10.6 points, marking a strong start. On the fifth shot, she dropped below 10 points for the first time with 9.9 points, and on the sixth shot, she scored 8.7 points, showing some instability in her aim.

While Oh Ye-jin hesitated briefly, Kim Ye-ji surged forward, and the two athletes engaged in a fierce battle for the lead. After completing 10 shots, Oh Ye-jin was in first place with 101.7 points, followed closely by Kim Ye-ji with 101.5 points. Even after the 12th shot, when one shooter was eliminated each time, the two continued to exchange first and second places, showcasing the strength of Korean shooting. Oh Ye-jin hit 10.6 points on the final shot, setting a new Olympic final record with a total of 243.2 points.