India's pistol shooters competing in the ISSF World Cup in Fort Benning, USA, will be without the services of coach Sayed Wajid Ali, as he has been denied a visa to travel for the May 4-13 tournament. The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) said the US embassy is yet to give a reason for denying the government core-group coach visa.
'We have spoken to all the foreign coaches and they have assured us that they are all committed to their jobs till Tokyo Games'
The NRAI has proposed to appoint specialised chief coaches for pistol, rifle and shotgun disciplines instead of one national coach to help the shooters achieve better results.
Woman shooter Heena Sidhu created history by becoming the first pistol exponent from India to win a gold medal at the ISSF World Cup finals in Munich, Germany.
'They are just making me the scapegoat after what happened in Tokyo. They can't just pass the buck to me for Manu Bhaker's failure. What were the coaches doing in Tokyo? I was not there with them at the Olympics.'
WFI's ad-hoc panel to work with just one member for at least a week
Confined to their homes owing to the coronavirus pandemic, India's top shooters will soon be provided with shooting range simulators -- SIUS Ascor's electronic target systems -- which will allow them to practice indoors efficiently. Work is already underway but it could still take a month's time for the equipment to be delivered to the shooters.
Indian shooter Manish Narwal on Saturday expressed gratitude towards family, coaches and everyone who supported him during the journey after he won a gold medal in the Tokyo Paralympics.
The discontent with the Indian Badminton League has almost come to an end as men's doubles specialists Sanave Thomas and Rupesh Kumar have decided to compete in the franchise-based tournament.
Indians will enter the upcoming Olympics with heightened expectations
India wrapped up their shooting assignment at the 24th Deaflympics in Caxais do Sul, Brazil, by finishing in second place with three gold and two bronze medals.
India's junior shooting coach Jaspal Rana advised his wards, urging them to follow in the footsteps of Abhinav Bindra and not take things for granted.
Back-to-back scheduling of Asian Games and World Championships has forced the Indian shooting contingent to be frugal with the use of live ammunition.
National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) President Raninder Singh took upon himself the blame for the shooters' dismal outing at the Rio Olympics, saying it was a mistake on his part to allow the athletes to train with personal coaches.
Paralympic medallist Singhraj Adhana won two gold medals on the final day as India produced their best-ever performance at the Para Shooting World Cup, finishing with 10 medals in Munich.
The team will be accompanied by six coaches -- Deepali Deshpande, Samaresh Jung, Manoj Kumar, DS Chandel, Ronak Pandit and Ved Prakash -- and two physios.
A country can win a maximum of two quota places in a particular shooting event.
The deadly COVID-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented postponement as the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Japanese government and the athletes world over agreed that Olympics in July-August this year could not have gone ahead in the present circumstances.
"Besides, three para shooters -- Singharaj, Rahul Jhakhar and Deepinder Singh (all para pistol shooters) and two coaches Subhas Rana (national coach) and Vivek Saini (assistant coach) did not get their visas.
Indian pistol ace Manu Bhaker says she will continue to shoot in three events, including the 25m, despite enduring a hat-trick of heartbreaks in her Olympics campaign in Tokyo.
Krrish, Ravi enter semis of Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships
India will be represented by a record 15 shooters at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
While NRAI has said it has been postponed, SAI says it has been 'principally approved'.
Manu's pistol had 'suffered a circuit malfunction'
One of India's strongest Olympic medal hopes, ace shooter Manu Bhaker feels preparations 'cannot get better' than the ongoing training-cum-competition tour of Croatia as she works on her consistency ahead of the Tokyo Games.
India's shooters opened their account at the Asian Games, bagging the women's team silver in the 10m air rifle event in Hangzhou on Sunday.
India's Sanjeev Rajput and Shahzar Rizvi won 10m air rifle and air pistol event finals respectively in the second International Online Shooting Championship on Saturday. The competitors logged in through Zoom app from their respective locations and shot using their Electronic Shooting Targets.
A spokesperson of CD Projekt, the company behind the video game, dug out a 2018 photograph of the shooter in a Witcher-themed shirt, praising her "years-long commitment to the Witcher universe".
Drawing confidence from Saurabh Chaudhary's Zen-like calm and lethal efficiency with pistol, shooting coach Amit Sheoran says his most famous ward will be well-placed both mentally and skill-wise whenever the Tokyo Olympics are held. It doesn't matter to the world-beater if the next Summer Games are held tomorrow, after a year or even after 10 years, according to the coach.
P V Sindhu won the ESPN's 'Female Sportsperson of the Year' award while young shooter Saurabh Chaudhary bagged the honour in the male category.
India's ace shooter Manu Bhaker on Tuesday received her first dose of COVID-19 vaccine at a government hospital in Jhajjar, Haryana, three months before the Tokyo Olympics where she will enter as one of India's brightest medal hopes.
In awe of the sensational Saurabh Chaudhary, former World championship silver-medallist shooter Jitu Rai feels the reticent youngster has it in him to humble one of the sport's all-time greats, South Korean Jin Jong-Oh, at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Teen sensations Bhaker, Chaudhary and Bhanwala grabbed podiums and headlines with their fearless approach, with Japsal, in their own words, playing a crucial role in their success.
The IOA was supposed to provide details of the country's vaccinated athletes to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by May 27 and had asked the national federations to share the information.
A day before the Tokyo-bound Indian shooting contingent hits the range for its first training session in Croatia, Manu Bhaker's pistol will give way to a pen and the shooting gear to her study materials, as she logs in for her BA fourth semester exam.
Least affected by the recent controversies around her, India's pistol ace Heena Sidhu's primary target is the World Championship
I have designed an international level shooting range at home. I have named it 'Mission Olympic' and have written on them Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024'
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
The participation of Indian athletes in Friday's Tokyo Olympic Games opening ceremony will be kept to a 'bare minimum' in view of the COVID-19 threat, while only six officials from the contingent will be allowed to take part in the event.
Verma wins compound individual gold, opens tally for India.
