Dina Aspandiyarova has survived a tense final of the women’s 10m air pistol to win a quota place for Australia for the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Dina Aspandiyarova has survived a tense final of the women’s 10m air pistol to win a quota place for Australia for the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Competing at the ISSF World Cup in the Korean city of Changwon, Aspandiyarova qualified for the final in fifth place with a score of 385, before finishing in seventh place overall with a score of 480.2.
Four athletes who had already won quota places for the 2012 London Olympic Games finished in the top six which left Aspandiyarova with the final quota place on offer.
It continues the 34-year-old’s excellent run of form after she finished fifth in the final of the previous World Cup event in Sydney last month.
Aspandiyarova said she was relieved to get the quota place.
"It was not my best final today and I am really disappointed with that, but to win the quota for Australia is fantastic," Aspandiyarova said. "I have made the last two finals now and while I am happy with that, I need to go away and work on my shooting in finals.
"I am looking forward to the next World Cup now and really want to get on the medal dais."
Fellow Australian’s Lalita Yauhleuskaya and 2010 Youth Olympic Games representative Emily Esposito finished 26thand 45th with scores of 380 and 375.
Australia has now won two quota places for the women’s 10m air pistol for London next year, after 47-year-old Yauhleuskaya won a silver medal at the 2010 ISSF World Championships in Munich last year.
Although Aspandiyarova and Yauhleuskaya have not qualified for the 2012 London Olympic Games by winning the quota places, they are currently ranked number one and two in Australia.
Australian International Shooting Limited will nominate its team to the Australian Olympic Committee early next year, with selections based on recent performances and national ranking.
Aspandiyarova has previously competed at two Olympic Games, with her best result a sixth-place finish in the final of the women’s 10m air pistol at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, when she was still competing for her former country Kazakhstan.
Aspandiyarova received her Australian citizenship in 2005 and competed at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in both the women’s 10m air pistol and women’s sport pistol.
Australian International Shooting Limited
