Manu Bhaker Takes Home The Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024
Indian shooting sensation, Manu Bhaker, will be soon awarded India’s sporting arena’s highest accolade — the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024. For her exemplary contributions and achievements in the sport of shooting, the President Of India, Sri. Droupadi Murmu will present this award on January 17, 2025, to Manu Bhaker. A Bit About Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award Instituted in 1991, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award has been given in honor of the legendary Indian hockey player, Major Dhyan Chand. This award will catapult Manu Bhaker into the history of sporting activities of India as one of the historic bronze medals at the Paris Olympics 2024 for players of international sports of excellence who have rendered outstanding performances at international levels. Manu Bhaker’s Path Towards Glory The road for Manu Bhaker in this landmark achievement had actually begun at the age of 14. She had passed through various kinds of sports in her life-tennis, boxing, and skating-before finally settling upon shooting. Once she decided that shooting was something for her, passion for the sport began at a rapid speed, and by the end of the week when she decided it, her father, being a very steady support to her, went out and bought a pistol to initiate what would go on to be a legendary career. Manu Bhaker’s Meteoric Ascent Manu Bhaker reached her peak within a very short span of time. Bhaker, who has crowned herself as National champion in 2017 at National Shooting Championships, had set a national record for producing 242.3 in 10m Air Pistol far higher than Olympian and former world No.1 Heena Sidhu. She did win a silver medal in Asian Junior Championships that year itself, thereby already consolidating her status as one of the brightest stars of young India. Manu Bhaker’s First International Experience 2018 has been the season where Bhaker announced herself globally. She, at Guadalajara, made history breaching the qualification round junior world record and won her very first gold as a 16-year-old, which gave her the right to be an ISSF World Cup gold medallist when only 16 years old-a record that may be difficult for anyone else in the country. Manu Bhaker continued on the same winning spree, bagging multiple golds in single events and team mixed events also. Manu Bhaker Breaks Records Manu Bhaker shot a new Games record to clinch the gold in the women’s 10m Air Pistol event at the Commonwealth Games in Australia. This streak of success was topped by a good performance at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she narrowly missed a medal as her pistol jammed at the crucial moment after topping the qualification round. Her efforts finally paid off when she won the bronze medal in the 10m Air Pistol at the 2024 Paris Olympics and so entered the league of the world’s best shooters. Manu Bhaker; A Deserving Candidate For A Big Prize This prize appreciates not only the feat she achieved at the competition level but also for the efforts that she had made and perseverance with which she managed to bring the attention of the whole world to Indian shooting. Bhaker has motivated thousands of youngsters all across the nation with the performances that she gave and with the saga of persistence which she tells about facing all kinds of adversities. Bright Future For Manu Bhaker Ahead Manu Bhaker’s name will be etched in the pages of history books next to sporting legends of India as she is one of the select few who receive the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The Government Of India will confer this distinction on Bhaker on January 17, 2025, in a ceremony that will forever etch her name in Indian sport history. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
Paris 2024 Medallists Return To National Shooting Championships
India’s Paris Olympics 2024 medallists are expected to return to competitive shooting at the Senior National Shooting Championships, which will commence on Wednesday, December 11, 2024. Olympic Medalists Return To Action At National Shooting Championships The Senior National Shooting Championships will feature big names such as Swapnil Kusale, who will be competing in the rifle events and Sarabjot Singh, who will compete in the pistol events. However, the star of India’s Paris 2024 campaign, Manu Bhaker, will only compete in the Minimum Qualification Score (MQS) section, meaning that her scores will not be taken into account in the competition. Will Manu Bhaker Participate At National Shooting Championships? Manu Bhaker was a double medallist at the Paris Olympics 2024. She has sought to be considered for the MQS section while she continues to recover and polish her skills. After a long break following her success at Paris 2024, she traveled with her personal coach, Jaspal Rana to Lugano, Switzerland, to focus on improving the technical aspects of her weapon at the Morini factory. Currently, Bhaker has been training at Delhi’s Karni Singh Shooting Range however she prefers to take more time before fully re-engaging in high-level competition. Manu, the other two Olympic medallists—Kusale and Singh—are returning from a break in training by skipping the October World Cup. Selection Trials And National Games After selection trials, the National Games are scheduled in Uttarakhand starting from January 28,2025 to February 14, 2025. Even the NRAI has not stated its official selection policy in place yet, though debate is going on about alterations. Among such, one important proposal on table includes the right to practice the national campers with personal coaches outside the national camps, which is similar to that adopted by the NRAI a few years back at Paris Olympics where shooters ready to head for the Games can meet their personal coaches who remain in touch with national coaches. NRAI Policy Discussions And Support Elite Shooters With domestic competition still growing, another proposal in discussion is to help shooters who have fallen out of the national team’s ecosystem. It is challenging for many shooters to re-enter the national camp once they are out for some time. This new policy may help in technical support and coaching for such talents. Participation At Senior National Shooting Championships A record 13,522 shooters have enrolled for the national championships, which will be participated in rifle events, with the maximum number of entries (7,013). Rifle competitions will be held from December 15-31 at the MP State Shooting Academy in Bhopal. Pistol competitions will be conducted at the Karni Singh Shooting Range in Delhi. Also, 837 shotgun shooters will be taking part in skeet, trap, and double trap competitions with defending champions Anant Jeet Singh Naruka and Ganemat Sekhon eyeing title retention in men’s and women’s skeet. Which athlete are you looking forward to perform at the National Shooting Championships? The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
Swapnil Kusale: The Calm Marksman Inspired by MS Dhoni
Hailing from Kambalwadi village near Kolhapur in Maharashtra, Swapnil Kusale started competing at the international level back in 2012 and finally made his Olympic debut at the Paris Olympics 2024. The 29-year-old shooter hopes to emulate another cricket icon, M S Dhoni, who happened to be a former railway ticket collector. Inspired by Dhoni Kusale, working with Central Railways since 2015, has always been an admirer of former India captain Dhoni because of his calmness and patience, which are two very important virtues for cricket and shooting alike. “I don’t follow anyone specific in the shooting world. Outside of that, I admire Dhoni for the person that he is. My sport requires me to be as calm and patient as he is on the field. I also relate to his story as I am a ticket collector like he was,” Kusale shared. One could see his admiration for Dhoni’s life story as he has watched the biopic of the World Cup-winning cricketer numerous times. Family Support and Local Roots Kusale draws strength from more than just his admiration for Dhoni. His father and brother work as teachers in a district school, and his mother is the sarpanch of Kambalwadi village. It is this strong family foundation that has contributed heavily to his rise through the ranks to the Olympics. An Aim to Win Olympic Medals In a tight qualification, Kusale finished seventh and only ahead of his Czech rivals through counting inner 10s – he scored 38 to their 36. Afterwards Kusale explained his strategy for the event: “Every shot is a new shot. I was just trying to be patient. The whole match I had the same mindset. Just shoot with patience. At the back of the mind, you are thinking about your scores but it is better if you don’t.“ Coach’s Confidence and Peers’ Motivation National coach Manoj Kumar Ohlyan sounded quite confident about Kusale’s prospects in the finals, saying, “He is in a good frame of mind. We are hoping for the best. We just want him to perform the way he did today. He was patient. He is good technically and physically.“ She also took inspiration from fellow shooter Manu Bhaker, who had enjoyed unprecedented success at the Games. “It has been a great experience so far. I love shooting and I am glad that I have been able to do it for so long. Seeing Manu do well gives us a lot of confidence. If she can do it, we can do it too,” Kusale said. Keeping cool, his Dhoni-like patient calm will be equally important as he waits for a final placing, hopefully inside the top three, that will catapult him into the ranks of Indian sport’s high achievers. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
Paris 2024: Sarabjot Singh’s Journey To The Podium
Sarabjot Singh has marked a remarkable milestone in Indian sports by clinching a bronze medal in the 10m Air Pistol mixed team event at the Paris Olympics 2024. Partnering with Manu Bhaker, Singh played a crucial role in securing India’s second medal at Paris 2024, overcoming earlier setbacks to achieve his dream. The Indian duo displayed exceptional skill and composure at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre, defeating South Korea 16-10 in the final. Sarabjot Singh contributed by scoring 110.2 points out of India’s total of 261.3. His performance included pivotal shots of 10.2 and 10.5 that ensured India’s victory. From Humble Beginnings to Olympic Stardom Sarabjot Singh hails from Dheen village in Ambala, Haryana, where his father Jatinder Singh works as a farmer and his mother Hardeep Kaur is a homemaker. His introduction to shooting came during his childhood at a summer camp, where he was captivated by the sight of children using air guns. Though initially aspiring to be a footballer, Singh’s passion shifted to shooting after this experience. In 2014, at the age of 13, Singh expressed his desire to pursue shooting to his father. Despite concerns about the sport’s cost, Singh’s persistent efforts convinced his family to support his decision. His early foray into shooting was marked by a silver medal in his debut district-level tournament, which set the stage for his future successes. Rise to Prominence Singh’s ascent in the shooting world began in earnest when he joined the AR Shooting Academy in Ambala Cantt, training under coach Abhishek Rana. His dedication quickly paid off as he won gold medals at the 2019 Junior World Championship and achieved significant success in subsequent competitions. Singh secured the Asian Games team gold and mixed team silver in 2023 and an individual bronze at the 2023 Asian Championships, which earned him a quota place for the Paris Olympics 2024. Despite his impressive track record, Singh faced a heart-wrenching moment at the Paris Games when he missed out on the final of the men’s 10m pistol event by a narrow margin, finishing ninth with a score of 577-16x. The deciding factor was a single inner 10, highlighting the intense competition and precision required in Olympic shooting. A Triumphant Redemption Sarabjot Singh’s Olympic journey took a triumphant turn with the bronze medal win in the 10m Air Pistol mixed team event. His contribution was crucial as he and Manu Bhaker maintained their lead throughout the match, eventually securing a comfortable victory. Singh was awarded with his first Olympic medal. Click here to know more on how the game went. Manu Bhaker, who had previously won a bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol event, became the first Indian to win multiple medals at a single Olympic Games. Sarabjot Singh’s achievement places him among the elite shooters to have represented India on this prestigious stage. Sarabjot Singh’s journey from a young boy with a dream to an Olympic medalist serves as an inspiration to aspiring athletes. The Sportz Planet Desk,Atharva Shetye
