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BEIJING - Thirty shots into men's 50-metre prone rifle final at the Olympics today, New Zealand shooter Robert Eastham was threatening to cause a Games boilover.
At 19, the youngest in the field by 13 months, he had missed a perfect 10 just once, an effort only eventual gold medal winner Artur (correct) Ayvazian of the Ukraine and Finn Juha Hirvi were able to top.
The Massey University earth sciences student eventually finished 14th of 56 after firing his full 60 shots at the Beijing Shooting Range.
He shot 594 from a possible 600, missing the eight-man final by a solitary point.
While his startling start excited his fans, his five flatmates watching on TV in Palmerston North among them, Eastham had to stay cool, even though he knew he was going well.
"A lot of pyschology comes into it. I was `yeah, that's good, just do it again', but the wind picked up a lot after that," he said.
A 99 out of 100 in the next 10-shot bracket kept him in play for a slot in the final, but two 98s to finish ended his dramatic and unexpected medal chase.
It was a bitter sweet moment for Eastham. He had shot well under intense Olympic pressure, putting 94 shots into a 10 millimetre circle from 50 metres in fickle winds, only to come up short of the final by the smallest of margins.
"I shot my best, it's bloody good. I'm a bit disappointed to be one shot off, it's always frustrating when you don't get the chance to shoot for a medal," he told NZPA.
"I felt like I did my best on each shot. It was a hard wind, a bit tricky. There were points where it was bad, and you had to back off a bit."
Eastham was unfazed when he dropped points early in his final bracket, steeling himself to make his last five shots count. They were all perfect.
Now his competition is over, he is going to take the chance to relax and thank all those who have helped him, such as his shooting buddies in Palmerston North and his sponsors.
And he'll be catching up with his flatmates in Linton St.
"I've been in touch with them by text and Bebo and on the internet. They were watching on TV, I hope they had a good time."
Ayvazian shot 599 to hold a two-point lead over American Matthew Emmons in qualifying, with Vebjoern Berg of Norway third on 596.
After a 10-shot final, Ayvazian won the gold, totalling 702.7, with Emmons second, and Warren Potent of Australia third.
- NZPA
