Five Pistol Athletes Named 2024 USA Shooting Junior Olympic Champions

Five athletes—Ankita Deokule, Nathan Lim, Mark Shen, Suman Sanghera and Blaine Simpson—were named champions at the 2024 USA Shooting Pistol National Junior Olympic Championships held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 11-17.

The weeklong competition consisted of five different events with more than 100 junior athletes competing for their shot at a title. The competition, held at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center this year, is an annual match for athletes aged 21 and under. All competitors must shoot at a state-level match to qualify and receive an invite to the national level. 

Ankita Deokule was named Junior Olympic Champion in Women’s 25m Sport Pistol. The event consists of precision shooting and rapid shooting portions. Deokule shot in two qualification rounds, where her combined total of 1068 landed her a spot in the final with the seven other top competitors. Deokule earned the gold medal by outshooting Riya Salian, who finished second.

 

As for Nathan Lim, he earned the Men’s Air Pistol title. A California native, he shot in two qualification matches consisting of 60 shots each. Lim’s combined score of 1134 was the highest of all competitors and earned him a spot in the final. Lim won the final and bested Joseph Koh, second place finisher, to earn his gold medal. The Bridge Junior Team, a pistol club based out of La Puente, California, swept the podium in Men’s Air Pistol. All three overall medalists belong to and train at the club.

Mark Shen claimed his gold medal in Men’s 25m Sport Pistol. Shen shot a combined overall qualification score of 1063. Shen was among eight finalists who competed at their shot for a medal. Shen’s victory was earned when he out shot Johnathan Dorsten who had to settle for second place.

 

Suman Sanghera won the Women’s Air Pistol championship. After two matches, the 2023 World Championship team member shot a combined qualification score of 1133, the highest of all competitors. Sanghera claimed her victory in the final by triumphing over Sneha Gupta, who finished second.

Blaine Simpson earned the final National Junior Olympic Champion title in the Men’s 25m Rapid Fire Pistolevent. He shot two qualification matches equaling a total of 1077, which was the highest of all competitors at the competition. Simpson claimed his gold medal in the final after defeating William Regala, who landed in second place.

“The competition was a huge success because of all the dedicated and talented athletes,” USA Shooting Competitions Manager Ashley MacAllister said. “We recognize and appreciate all the hard work these junior athletes have put in to make it to this level of competition. I would also like to thank all our great volunteers for helping us with the match. Their selflessness does not go unnoticed.”

Competitors at the 2024 USA Shooting Pistol National Junior Olympic Championships also received medals in the 18 and under (U18) and 15 and under (U15) age categories. You can see all of the awardees and their scores below.

Women’s 25m Sport Pistol

Overall Medalists (final scores)

1. Ankita Deokule, gold 24
2. Riya Salian, silver 22
3. Eva Allan, bronze 17

U18

1. Saanvi Singh, gold 1107-20X
2. Lucia Kim, silver 1092-17X
3. Rachel Kim, bronze 1074-19X

U15

1. Caroline Tso, gold 996-9X
2. Jia Lee, silver 976-9X
3. Anjali Deokule, bronze 976-4X

Men’s Air Pistol

Overall Medalists (final scores)

1. Nathan Lim, gold 223.6
2. Joseph Koh, silver 232.1
3. Mark Shen, bronze 211.7

U18

1. Nathan Bae, gold 1127-20X
2. William Regala, silver 1106-18X
3. Dominic Quintino, bronze 1097-22X

U15

1. Walter Armitage, gold 1088-19X
2. Terry Hur, silver 1059-10X
3. Blake Hankins, bronze1053-15X

Men’s 25m Sport Pistol

Overall Medalists (final scores)

1. Mark Shen, gold 20
2. Johnathan Dorsten, silver 18
3. Austin Stone, bronze 15

U18

1. William Regala, gold 1089-16X
2. Nathan Lim, silver 1081-7X
3. Evan Langerak, bronze 1048-8X

U15

1. Terry Hur, gold 1053-14X
2. Ryan Allan, silver 960-11X
3. Walter Armitage, bronze 868-4X

Women’s Air Pistol

Overall Medalists (final scores)

1. Suman Sanghera, gold 237.0
2. Sneha Gupta, silver 234.0
3. Danae Bell, bronze 211.0

U18

1. Rachel Kim, gold 1103-19X
2. Chloe Bae, silver 1095-18X
3. Lucia Kim, bronze 1092-21X

U15

1. Eva Allan, gold 1112-21X
2. Jia Lee, silver 1110-15X
3. Anjali Deokule, bronze 1082-12X

Men’s 25m Rapid Fire Pistol

Overall Medalists

1. Blaine Simpson, gold 1077-10X
2. William Regala, silver 1062-16X
3. Mark Shen, bronze 1055-10X

U18

1. Elie Arkin, gold 1011-9X
2. Dominic Quintino, silver 973-10X
3. Evan Langerak, bronze965-6X

U15

1. Terry Hur, gold 944-12X
2. Ryan Allan, silver 876-6X
3. Walter Armitage, bronze 150-0X

Additionally, Ty Goede was recognized a Paralympic pistol competitor at the match. He competed in P1 Men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1.

If you or someone you know is interested in Paralympic shooting, please email USA Shooting Paralympic Coach Brenda Silva at [email protected].

You can view all official 2024 USA Shooting National Junior Olympic Championships scores at this link.

Junior Olympics is the first half of the selection procedures for the 2024 International Shooting Sports Federation Junior World Championships, taking place this fall in Lima, Peru. The second half of the selectionprocess will be the 2024 USA Shooting National Championships in June.

Learn more about USA Shooting at usashooting.org.