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Saurabh Chaudhary is undoubtedly one of the best pistol shooters India has ever produced. He is one of the Indian shooters who played a vital role in the country's extraordinary rise in the sport of shooting over the last few years.
Saurabh has been in the limelight since 2018. The 19-year-old is always one of the shooters from India to watch out for at any international shooting competition. His demonstration of impressive performances labeled him the "next big thing" in Indian shooting.
Read: Will the pressure get the better of the Indian shooting team at the Tokyo Olympics?
Saurabh Chaudhary is a member of the Indian shooting contingent heading to the Tokyo Olympics 2020. He and other Indian shooters are currently training in Zagreb, Croatia.
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They participated in the Croatian leg of the 2021 ISSF World Cup in Osijek, where Saurabh won a silver and bronze in 10m air pistol mixed team and individual respectively.
Thus, Saurabh Chaudhary is one of India's top medal prospects in shooting at the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
Read: Tokyo Olympics: India's shooting medal prospects and their events
Saurabh Chaudhary's humble beginnings to becoming one of India's top shooting stars
Saurabh Chaudhary comes from a humble family of farmers residing in the Kalina village of Meerut district in Uttar Pradesh. His father, Jagmohan Singh, is a farmer.
Saurabh first took up an interest in shooting when he accompanied his friend to a local shooting range. Instantly, he liked the shooting range and joined the next day. His parents were concerned whether he would lack concentration on studies because of shooting.
However, Saurabh assured his parents he would focus on studies as well as shooting.
Saurabh's elder brother Nitin Kunwar Chaudhary took him to Amit Sheoren and asked him to practice. The coach was awestruck by his shooting prowess and took him under his wings. He was also impressed by his dedication and appealed to Saurabh's parents to buy him a pistol.
Saurabh's father, Jagmohan Singh, took out a loan of Rs. 2,50,000 and brought him a personal pistol. The amount of money his father spent on buying him a pistol became worth after he saw his career rise.
Saurabh Chaudhary's meteoric rise to the top
Saurabh Chaudhary got his first international break in 2016 when he won the silver medal in the Men's Team event at the ISSF Junior World Cup. That year, he bagged two silver medals at the Asian Shooting Championships in Doha, Qatar.
At the 2018 Asian Games, Saurabh became the youngest Indian shooter to win a gold medal in the 10m air pistol event. This was followed by three gold medals in the 10m pistol individual, men's team and mixed team at the Asian Airgun Championships and a gold medal at the Youth Olympic Games.
In 2019, Saurabh won two individual gold medals and four golds in a mixed team event at the ISSF World Cup. In that process, he also booked his Olympic berth at the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
Saurabh's coach Samaresh Jung says:
"He never get satisfied by the score. He comes back and says these were the problems and how can we sort it out. He has that desire to improve."
In 2020, the Government of India conferred Saurabh Chaudhary with the Arjuna Award.
Read: Can Indian shooters make Tokyo Olympics an unforgettable bonanza?
Saurabh Chaudhary's Olympic dream
Saurabh Chaudhary will be representing India in his debut Summer Games at the Tokyo Olympics 2020, which is slated to be held later this month. He is one of India's top medal hopefuls in shooting, considering his rise in career in recent years.
Saurabh says:
"Whatever has been taught by my guru and coach, based on that I want to give my best"
Saurabh's Tokyo Olympics campaign will begin on 24th July 2021.
Watch the video here:
Read: Explained: Shooting events in which India can bag medals at Tokyo Olympics 2020
