Rediff.com« Back to articlePrint this article

Sports Shorts: Heena bags gold, Nivetha bronze in Hannover

Last updated on: May 14, 2018 16:10 IST

A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday

 

Heena Sidhu

IMAGE: Heena Sidhu. Photograph: Jono Searle/Getty Images

Indian shooter Heena Sidhu clinched the gold medal while compatriot P Shri Nivetha settled for bronze in the women's 10m air pistol at the International Shooting Competitions of Hannover (ISCH) ahead of next week's ISSF Munich World Cup.

Heena was in rollicking form in the final where she was tied with France's Mathilde Lamolle on 239.8 points. She won the tie to win the gold ahead of Mathilde. While Shri Nivetha finished on 219.2.

The finish marks a strong build-up to next week's ISSF World Cup in Munich.

After beginning with a series of scores in the 9s, Heena switched gears and notched up 10 and above consistently to break away from the field. Her second series produced consistent 10s and she even hit a perfect 10.9 in the elimination round to put herself in contention for gold.

After initially fighting for the 3rd-4th position, the Commonwealth gold medallist Indian scored a 10.9 on her 13th shot in the final to take the lead and then held her nerve till the end.

Heena qualified for the final in the fourth place scoring 572 while Shri Nivetha topped the qualification with a total of 582.

"I am feeling good with how my training is shaping up. Of course, it's not perfect but we are moving in the right direction so it's just a matter of time,” said Heena after her gold medal win.

The ISSF Munich World Cup will ne held from May 22 to 29 and will be Heena's second major competition after her twin medal success at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast and the World Cup in Korea.

Heena had won a gold in the women's 25m pistol event in Gold Coast and a silver in 10 metre air pistol.

Woods declares himself ready to win again

Tiger Woods

IMAGE: Tiger Woods. Photograph: Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images

After finishing equal 11th at the Players Championship on Sunday, Tiger Woods declared himself ready to win another title.

For the second day running, Woods plundered the first 12 holes at TPC Sawgrass, this time picking up six birdies.

He was unable to finish quite so strongly, finding water at the island-green 17th for a double-bogey.

He blamed a gust of wind, rather than a bad shot for that stumble, however.

"I fe1t good on every facet of the game and it's weird not to mis-hit a shot today and only shoot three-under," the 14-times major champion said.

Generating as much club-head speed with his driver as almost anyone in the field, the 42-year-old showed he has lost little of his power after last year's spinal fusion.

He also had good distance control with his irons and bounced back on the greens after putting woefully in Charlotte.

"I didn't play particularly well the first couple of days but I turned it around this weekend. Unfortunately just didn't cash in," he said after finishing seven strokes behind winner Webb Simpson.

"If I would have had the game I had this weekend at the beginning of the week I would have given Webb a little bit of a run."

Woods will have only one more start, at the Memorial tournament in two weeks, to hone his game before the US Open at Shinnecock Hills.

He has been in contention in the final round in four of his eight starts

this year.

"I'm not that far off from winning," he said. "There's no way at the beginning of the year that I would have predicted I would have been at this point."

Golfer Simpson wins Players Championship by four strokes

Webb Simpson heard the roars echoing across TPC Sawgrass as Tiger Woods made a charge but in the end he had a large enough cushion to clinch a comfortable four-stroke victory at the Players Championship on Sunday.

The 2012 US Open champion was never seriously challenged after starting the day with a seven-shot lead, though Woods briefly got within four strokes after making six birdies in the first 12 holes.

"There's so much noise in front of us with Tiger," said Simpson.

"His roars are definitely a different sound than everybody else's but I knew he started 10 or 11 shots back, so he would have to do something really special."

Woods would stall later in the round, dropping three shots.

Simpson did not hit the high notes of his previous three rounds, but he was able to enjoy his victory march down the 18th fairway and even a double-bogey took nothing away from the quality of his performance.

He carded a 73 to finish at 18-under 270 for his fifth victory on the PGA Tour and first since late 2013.

South African Charl Schwartzel (67) and Americans Xander Schauffele (67) and Jimmy Walker (67) tied for second on 14-under.

Woods shot 69 after a double-bogey at the island-green 17th and ended equal 11th on 11-under.

Simpson was not expected to blow a lead bigger than anyone had ever blown in the final round of a PGA Tour event but he said it was not as easy as it looked.

"Over four years without a win, I never doubted myself but at the same time that's a long time," he said.

"(Today) was harder than I thought. You don't feel relaxed until that ball finds land on 17. So once that happened, internally I was celebrating."

Simpson dedicated the victory to his parents -- his late father Sam who died last November, and his mother Debbie back home in Raleigh, North Carolina.

"My dad got me started in the game," Simpson said.

"He kept me in other sports but he could tell that I was better in golf.

"I also felt unconditional love from my mum no matter how I played."

Kiwi boxer Nyika's Commonwealth gold medal stolen

New Zealand boxer David Nyika appealed for the return of the heavyweight gold medal he won at last month's Commonwealth Games after it was stolen from his car in Auckland.

On Monday, Nyika said he was taking the medal to show a young fan at a school in the city when he realised thieves had snatched it from his vehicle.

"At first I was quite embarrassed about it, but now I'm just angry," the 22-year-old told TVNZ.

"I just want the medal back. It's almost worthless to anyone but me, you know, so I really hope I can get it back."

According to AFP, etective Sergeant Paul Slater said police were reviewing CCTV footage from locations around Auckland to catch the culprits.

"Obviously a Commonwealth Games medal is very distinctive and of high sentimental value to the victim and his family," he said.

"Our priority is to return this medal to its rightful owner."

Nyika won light-heavyweight gold at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014, then followed up with gold in the heavyweight division this year on Australia's Gold Coast.

The 22-year-old was bitten by Antigua's Yakita Aska in his opening bout but went on to defeat Australia's Jason Whateley in the final.

After the win he spoke about joining fellow Kiwi heavyweight Joseph Parker in the professional ranks.

AGENCIES