Chinese sharpshooters Zhang Penghui and Liu Zhongsheng finished one-two in the men's 25-meter rapid fire pistol while China won the team title with a new world record of 1,743 points in Zagreb, capital of Croatia, on Sunday at the 49th World Shooting Championships.

Zhang, leading the qualification stage with 583 points, shot a fantastic 203.6 points in the 20-shot final round and won his first world title in his third attempt at the shooting worlds.

"Actually I had expected the team title instead of the individual," said Zhang, 28. "My personal aim was to make the final in the individual event.

"I should have done better in the qualification, but I am satisfied with my final. It was my highest final round score after the new rules were adopted."

Liu Zhongsheng, 32, went up from the third place after the qualification round to bag silver with a total of 781.7 points. Russia's Olympic gold medalist Sergei Alifirenko, 47, was third on778.9 points.

The Chinese team consisting of Zhang Penghui, Liu Zhongsheng and Liu Guohui scored 1,743 points, renewing the world record of 1,738 points produced by the Russian team in the European Championships in 2005.

(Xinhua News Agency August 1, 2006)