Udhayveer Sidhu wins 10m air pistol gold at ISSF World Cup

Udhayveer Sidhu won the men’s 10m air pistol gold medal at the 2026 ISSF World Cup in Cairo, Egypt, posting 240.6 in the final to secure his first senior World Cup title. The Indian shooter finished narrowly ahead of Germany’s Christian Reitz, who took silver with 240.1, while Italy’s Paolo Monna earned bronze on 219.8.

The result gave Udhayveer a major early-career milestone in Cairo. The 24-year-old was making his debut in the 10m air pistol event at this level and converted his place in the eight-shooter final into a gold-medal finish.

Sidhu edges Reitz in a close Cairo final

Udhayveer’s winning total of 240.6 left him 0.5 points clear of Reitz in a tight contest for the top two places. Reitz’s 240.1 secured the silver medal, while Monna finished third with 219.8 to complete the podium.

The final score underlined how little separated the gold and silver medallists. Udhayveer had entered the final after placing fourth in qualification with 585-19x, then produced the highest total when the medals were decided.

His qualification performance had placed him among the eight shooters advancing to the final. From there, the Indian shooter improved on his fourth-place qualifying position to finish first, taking the gold in an event where the final margin over Reitz was less than a point.

Jonathan Gavin Antony was the other Indian shooter in the qualification field. He finished second in qualification but was competing for ranking points only, meaning he was not in medal contention in Cairo.

Ajendra Singh Chauhan and Sarabjot Singh also competed in qualification for India. Chauhan finished 14th and Sarabjot placed 31st, with neither progressing to the eight-shooter final.

First senior World Cup gold for Udhayveer

The Cairo gold was Udhayveer’s first senior ISSF World Cup gold medal. It also came in his debut in the 10m air pistol event, making the result a significant individual achievement at the 2026 World Cup.

Udhayveer is the twin brother of Olympian Vijayveer Sidhu, who finished ninth at the Paris 2024 Olympics. In Cairo, Udhayveer added his own senior World Cup achievement by topping the men’s 10m air pistol final.

With 240.6 in the final, Udhayveer finished ahead of an experienced international field led by Reitz and Monna. The result put the Indian shooter on top of the Cairo podium and delivered a first World Cup gold in his senior career.

For India, the men’s 10m air pistol competition featured a gold-medal performance from Udhayveer after he advanced from fourth in qualification. His final total proved enough to hold off Reitz, while Monna completed the medal positions in third place.