Kiriakov clinches pistol gold

Tanyu Kiriakov basks in the glow of victory

Tanyu Kiriakov came through a tension-filled final to clinch Bulgaria's second gold medal of the Games in the men's 50-metre free pistol event.

It was a second personal gold for Kiriakov who won the 10m air pistol event in Seoul in 1988, and finished in the bronze medal position in Atlanta four years ago.

Using a customised paper target as an eyeshade, Kiriakov edged out Belarussion Igor Basinsky with Martin Tenk of the Czech Republic taking the bronze.

Kiriakov, though, almost blew his gold chances with his fifth shot, scoring just 7.2 after notching an impressive 10.5 with his previous shot.

Tenk takes third

Tenk put in a fine late bid to win silver after finishing third in the qualifying round. He ate away at the three-shot lead Basinsky's held over him and the two were tied going into the final round of shots.

But Basinsky held his nerve to guarantee himself second spot with a 9.1 final shot, with Tenk only managing 8.3.

Reigning world champion Wang Yifu of China was the pre-competition favourite for the gold but finished a disappointing sixth after going into the final round trailing Kiriakov by seven shots.

Kiriakov's gold followed Bulgaria's first of the Games, won by Izabela Dragneva who created history by winning the first women's weightlifting competition in the 48kg division.