KARACHI: The National Rifle Association of Pakistan (NRAP) has allocated a quota of seven shooters — including two women — for the XXI Common­wealth Games, scheduled to be held in Gold Coast, Australia in April, a spokesman of the association said on Wednesday.

“We have picked ten probables on the basis of outstanding scores in the extensive trials from which the squad will be selected in over a week’s time,” Razi Ahmed Khan, executive vice-president of NRAP, said.

Most of the events of the CW sports extravaganza will be staged at Gold Coast but shooting competition will be held in Melbourne.

Razi said trials are being conducted at the Naval International Shooting Range under the supervision of the selection committee, headed by NRAP secretary Javed Lodhi with retired Commodore Ghazanfar Abbas and Razi as members.

Razi said Pakistan has always done well at CW Games and “we are expecting a few medals from our sharp shooters in the rapidfire pistol event and shotgun skeet events.”

Pakistan’s Irshad Ali won country’s lone silver medal in 25-metre centre fire pistol in Melbourne in 2006 and also won the team a bronze with brother Zahid Ali in Manchester in 2002. Irshad Ali of Pakistan Navy overall clinched one silver and two bronze medals and is the country’s most successful marksman.

He said Australia, India and South Africa are leading shooting nations of the Commonwealth Games.

Pakistan would be fielding male shooters in skeet, trap, double trap, rapid-fire pistol, free pistol and air pistol while women are expected to take part in air rifle and air pistol events.

He informed that probables for the trials were selected on the basis of their performance in the nationals.

Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2018