Samrat Rana's Performance Ranked Among ISSF Top 5
India's young pistol shooter Samrat Rana has made 2025 a remarkable year. The International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) has included his gold medal-winning performance in the 2025 World Shooting Championship, held in Cairo last month, among the top five performances of the year.
Samrat Rana, a 20-year-old from Karnal, Haryana, created history by winning the gold medal in the men's 10m Air Pistol event. He became the first Indian shooter to win an individual World title at the senior level in this event.
In the same competition, Samrat also won a silver medal in the mixed team event alongside Asian medalist Isha Singh, his favorite teammate in the event.
ISSF’s Top Performers List
Announcing the top-5 performers, ISSF said, "Samrat Rana was the only shooter to defeat China's Hu Kai this season. He showed incredible composure under pressure and pulled off an upset that no one expected."
According to ISSF, in the men's 10m Air Pistol final, Samrat initially built a small lead, but with six shots left, Hu Kai took the lead. Samrat then made a spectacular comeback, scoring 10.9 in two consecutive series. Despite being behind by 0.1 points before the final two shots, Samrat hit 10.2 and 10.6, taking the lead and ultimately winning the gold medal.
Defeating the world number-1, Hu Kai, and limiting him to a silver medal in the World Championship was a big achievement in itself. In the same event, India's Varun Tomar (Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh) won the bronze, marking the first time two Indian shooters shared the podium in this event.
Final Match and Revenge by Hu Kai
However, in the final match of the season at the ISSF World Cup Finals in Doha, Hu Kai took revenge by winning the gold medal, while Samrat Rana (world number-6) had to settle for the bronze.
Hu Kai’s Top Performance
Hu Kai also featured in ISSF's top-5 performances. At the ISSF World Cup in Lima, he almost equaled the world record, missing out by just 0.1 points compared to the 2019 record set by Korea’s Kim Song-Guk. Additionally, Hu won six gold medals this season, finishing it with a brilliant World Cup final victory in Doha.