Zhang sets new world record at IPC Shooting World Cup

Zhang’s shooting also helped her team to a new world record in the team event, scoring 1236.6 with teammates Yaping Yan and Xiao Hong Bai.

Chinese Paralympic champion Cuiping Zhang set a new finals world record at the IPC Shooting World Cup in Osijek, Croatia, on Friday (10 July), her first competition of 2015.

The 27-year-old sensationally pulled away from the rest of the field to set a new best score of 210.1 in R2 (women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1) at the World Cup, which also acts as a qualifier for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

London 2012 gold medallist Zhang appeared to have dropped out of the best in the world in R2 in 2014, having finished 12th at the World Championships in Suhl, Germany.

However after the first round of elimination, the athlete nicknamed ‘sniper’ had built up a lead over Slovakian world champion and former world record holder Veronika Vadovicova (203.9) to show she is back amongst the best.

Australian Libby Kosmala, 73, also proved that she is still a force to be reckoned with a bronze medal score of 181.5.

Zhang’s shooting helped her team to a new world record in the team event, scoring 1236.6 with teammates Yaping Yan and Xiao Hong Bai.

Karen Butler, Deanna Coates and Lorraine Lambert won team silver for Great Britain (1199.7).

China picked up another gold courtesy of Xing Huang in P3 (mixed 25m pistol SH1). Huang won his contest against Ukrainian Oleksii Denysiuk, whilst Turkey’s Yamac Korhan beat Russian Andrey Lebedinksiy in the bronze medal match.

A third top podium finish for the Chinese came in the team event. Chao Yang, Jianfei Li and Huang scored 1705-36x. Russia (1697-33x) finished second with a team of Sergey Malyshev, Lebedinskiy and Alexander Belousov and Ukraine third, scoring 1651-28x with Denysiuk, Oleksii Iskakov and Andriy Zakhvatayev.

Serbia’s European champion Laslo Suranji (207.3) continued his great season with a win in R1 (men’s 10m air rifle standing SH1), his second World Cup victory of 2015.

Suranji was trailing China’s Dong Chao (206.6) in the early stages, but a 10.9 in the third elimination round helped him to turn things around.

The UAE’s Abdullah Sultan Alaryani (184.3) finished third.

Competition at the 2015 IPC Shooting World Cup continues on Saturday (11 July).

Live results, provided by IPC Shooting’s Targets and Results Provider Sius are available every day.

A livestream is also available at IPC Shooting's website.