Shooting powerhouse China continued to show its dominance at the 2009 ISSF World Cup Beijing stage as world silver medalist Hu Jun recovered from a shaky start to win the fourth gold of the host in the women's 10m air pistol.
Following last week's splendid five-gold performance at the first World Cup stage of the season in Changwon, South Korea, the Chinese shooters have grabbed half of the eight titles decided so far in the Olympic Shooting Range of Beijing with two more crowns on offer on Wednesday and Thursday.
Leading all shooters with 390 points after the qualification round, Hu scored a 7.4 in her first fire of the final, but she rallied to collect 93.1 points in the last nine shots for a winning total of 490.5 points.
"I did not panic after the first shot, because I knew the problem was with my concentration, not my move. I was a little distracted after the sighting shots," said Hu, the runner-up of this event at the World Championship in Zagreb, Croatia in 2006.
"Fortunately I found back my concentration soon enough and the next shots were not affected.
"After the Beijing Olympics, it's a new start for everybody. I am happy to start this season with a win and hopefully I can do better and better the rest of the season," Hu added.
Indian teenager Heena Sidhu, who placed fifth in the qualifications, took home the silver with 486.8 points after a strong performance in the final.
"Actually I was going for the gold," said the 19-year-old Sidhu, who made her World Cup debut only last week in Changwon, South Korea. "When I heard the '7.4', I thought, 'go for the gold'."
"I did well today, but my results in the qualifications could have been a little better," she added.
The bronze medal went to Lenka Maruskova of Czech Republic.
Earlier on Tuesday, Athens Olympic champion Lioubov Galkina of Russia took an easy victory in the women's 50m rifle 3 positions of the 2009 ISSF World Cup second stage.
Holding an narrow lead of one point over host shooter Xiong Meili after the qualification round, Galkina shot 101.9 points in the final for a winning total of 679.9.
"It's a tough match," said the 36-year-old Galkina. "It's a pity that Du Li did not play in this stage, but I am happy to win."
Du, who won this event at the Beijing Olympic Games last summer, is missing from this season's World Cup events due to preparation for the Chinese National Games in October.
Xiong finished second with 675.8 points while her teammate Wan Xiangyan, the seventh placer in the qualifications, scored a remarkable 102.7 points in the final to take the bronze.
(Xinhua News Agency April 22, 2009)
