By Gagan Narang
Nothing speaks louder than success and the performance of the Indian shooting contingent at the Paris Olympics proves that yet again.
It also proves that in sport, it is but a matter of time for the times to change. For a contingent that returned without a medal in 2021, has not just opened India’s medal tally, but the two athletes Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh who have bagged these medals, have created history! I am personally overwhelmed that 12 years apart, on the same day, we won yet another medal in shooting. And as you read this, Manu may well be on her way to winning a third medal for India.
It would perhaps be unfair not to mention Arjun Babuta, who missed his medal by a whisker. He played his best, but perhaps, like he said, it wasn’t his day.
So what really changed in this Olympics? There are a couple of things that immediately come to my mind – the first would have to be the confidence of the young shooters.
When I met the shooting contingent in the Games village before the matches, it was not just as the Chef De Mission, but as an athlete. The confidence that I saw in the young shooters was indeed heartening. As a senior player my only advice to them was to concentrate on the present. It is true that today’s athletes, in fact 10 out of the 21 member contingent, who have been Khelo India Athletes since 2018-19 have got support right from the grassroot-level on to elite support through TOPS, as well as the other 11 who are supported through TOPS, have the ease of not worrying about funds for training.
This is a very big relief for an athlete and that gives them the confidence to put in their 100 per cent in just the game.
Parallely, the motivation offered by the nation, starting right from the Hon’ble PM, gives them a sense that they are doing something worthwhile for the country.
The second game changer this time has been the unprecedented co-ordination between all stakeholders to ensure that the athletes got everything they asked for – be it personal coaches before and during at the Olympics, foreign training, state-of-the-art equipment – everything was made available throughout the Paris cycle.
And that’s not just for shooting, this has been the standard operating procedure for every sport.
Two medals at the start of the Olympics is a great motivator for all other athletes as well, and I am sure that we are poised to have our best Olympics ever.
In this historic moment for Indian shooting, the performance at the Paris Olympics exemplifies the power of preparation, confidence, and unwavering support.