Olympic Games Paris 2024

Paris 2024 Olympics: Refugee Luna Solomon misses out on 10m air rifle shooting final

By Michael Hincks
2 min|
Luna Solomon in action at Paris 2024

Picture by 2021 Getty Images

Luna Solomon continued to be a shining example for refugees around the world after competing in her second Olympic Games at Paris 2024.

Three years on from her Games debut in shooting at Tokyo 2020, the 30-year-old was in action again, this time at Chateauroux in central France.

Solomon, who arrived in Switzerland in 2015 having fled her homeland, placed 43rd in the women’s 10m air rifle qualification on Sunday (28 July).

It was not enough to make the final, however, with only the top eight athletes qualifying for Monday’s showdown for gold.

“In Paris, I want to be an example for refugees, to pass on the message of courage,” IOC Refugee Olympic Team member Solomon told Olympics.com ahead of Paris 2024.

“You have to be patient and courageous. Hold on to your dreams [and] never say ‘I can’t do it’. If you think positively and work hard, you will always make it.”

And on Sunday, Solomon continued to be a role model in the sport she started when Olympic champion Niccolo Campriani approached her as part of his Make A Mark project.

Italian Campriani, a four-time Olympic medallist (three gold, one silver), is now Solomon’s coach and she says he is 'like family'.

She has since competed at the World Championships and World Cup as well as Tokyo 2020, while in Sunday’s qualifier at Paris 2024, Solomon scored 601.2 points overall, with her best score a 101.4 in the fifth of sixth rounds.

Ban Hyojin from the Republic of Korea led the way, posting a Qualification Olympic Record score of 634.5 to finish first ahead of Norway’s Jeanette Hegg Duestad, who placed fourth at Tokyo 2020.

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