Indian shooting faces its moments of truth in the next 13 months. There has been many a slip between the proverbial cup and the lip in the last nine years. Why nine years, you may ask. If one traces the origin of decline, it was at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, where Indian marksmen won nine medals, seven of which were bronze.
Two years later, there was despair when Indian shooters won no medal at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. Had it not been for one bad shot in the final, Abhinav Bindra, winner of Air Rifle gold in the 2008 Beijing Olympics may have finished better than fourth place in Rio. He packed his kit – lock, stock and barrel for one last time – and left it in his home away from home in Germany.
There was an uproar after the 2016 Olympics, where Jitu Rai also came a cropper. After medals in three successive Olympics, silver in 2004 Athens courtesy RVS Rathore, Bindra’s gold in 2008, silver from Vijay Kumar and bronze from Gagan Narang in London 2012, it was believed Indian shooting would deliver non-stop.
That did not happen.
After Rio, a fact finding panel was formed, a sham of the highest order. Nothing changed after that. The changes prescribed were cosmetic, after all. If it had been an honest attempt, then the Asian Games in 2018 in Jakarta and Palembang would not have been such a disaster for Indian shooting. The nine medals did not have anything to cheer about.
For a nation which spends billions of rupees on shooting, all tax payers’ money, the returns in terms of medals has been poor. One prayed, the same fate did not await India in Tokyo2020. It is easy to say the Covid pandemic ruined India’s plans but that’s not right. The team went to Croatia for a month to train before the Olympics. It turned out to be a party zone and left Indian shooting left high and dry with a blank in Tokyo.
The then National Rifle Association of India President, Raninder Singh, faced flak. He pulled cotton wool over the eyes of millions of Indian fans, making Jaspal Rana a soft target. The Dronacharya was the only one who was blamed for India’s poor showing! Raninder told TV channels that Jaspal Rana had done the damage and mentally wrecked Manu Bhaker.
Like the proverbial lamb for slaughter, Jaspal Rana was sacrificed. He lost his job as coach at the Madhya Pradesh Shooting Academy. But he is back in business, unofficially, as he is helping out Manu Bhaker as a personal coach. It has raised eyebrows and created a stir. After all, why would Manu go to Jaspal, allegedly the villain.
Well, shooting is an individual sport and shooters make their own choice on who the best guide/mentor is. There is nothing wrong if she has patched up with Jaspal, a coach who saw her grow from a young age. After all, life is about learning from the best.
Viewed analytically, Manu’s return to learn from Jaspal is a tacit admission of India not having the best coaches – foreign and Indian. Munkhbayar Dorsjuren is the foreign pistol coach. It is clear that she has not been able to do much with two failed coaches Samresh Jung and Ronak Pandit. Had they coaches been doing a good job, we would not have seen two other promising shooters, Saurabh Chaudhary and Anish Bhanwala, lose their way.
Today, there is talent in India, especially in air events, pistol and rifle. Tapping talent and nurturing it is not easy. That is why in the next 13 months we will get answers if Indian shooters can win medals at the Hangzhou Asian Games, the World Championships, Asian Championships and then the Paris 2024 Olympics. These have to be the benchmarks, not winning medals at the junior championships.
Assuming that India has a talent pool, how is it groomed? If the mentoring gurus are good, why are they leaving jobs? Is it a coincidence that Trap coach Russel Mark and his wife Laura quit India? Is it a coincidence, Joydeep Karmakar quit as Rifle coach. Are the Indian coaches, Dronacharya Suma Shirur included, really performing? Answers to all this will come soon.
Back to foreign coaches, the best do not want to come to India. If you say that Marcello Dradi is returning, that’s a joke. He is a failed coach who did nothing for Trap shooting in India. He was good in his prime, he was good for other countries but to bring sanity into the Indian shooting system will be hard. Dradi will also have an excuse ready as he has been ‘brought so late!’
Frankly, NRAI sucks. If Raninder Singh had to go after completing his full term, interim President Kalikesh Singh Deo has sent wrong messages in his media interactions. Twice, he has hinted that it is no big deal if coaches come and go. If that be the case, Kalikesh Singhdeo could also go. After all, he has to win an election and the Sports Ministry will not be twiddling its thumbs for long.
The problem in NRAI is improper governance and a flawed selection policy. In NRAI, selectors rely on trial scores. It’s actually trial and error, if you ask me. If shooters have to burn themselves out in training, competitions, camps and needless trials, why have a selection committee? The computer which throws up averages and consistency graphs can decide in the era of AI (artificial intelligence) and ChatGpt.
Worst, there is none to answer how careers were ruined, as Saurabh and Anish are just two examples. Does anyone know where Jitu Rai is? To fail in two Olympic cycles has been a disgrace. One hopes, Indian shooting does well. However, the way youngsters are being pushed into high pressure competition, minus experience, one shudders. Fingers crossed!
Kannan is Lead Editor, FirstSportz
