Shooting for the Stars!

As the days draw closer for the games to begin, my usually cynical outlook on any medal prospects is being replaced by growing confidence that this might be a good year for India at the Olympics. Wrestling, boxing, hockey, badminton all seem poised to be medal winners for the country.

Of all the different disciplines in which the athletes are going to slug it out, shooting is one sport that holds a good chance of getting the medals for India. Not only did we get the silver and the gold in the previous 2 olympics from this discipline, our shooters are in fine form in the run up to the olympics.

Take the case of Ronjan Sodhi. He may have missed out on the 2008 Beijing games, but he has more than made up for it. From defending world titles to losing weight to become more fit, Sodhi has ensured that he made the cut for the London Olympics. The fact that he is being seen as one of the medal prospects for the country is testament to how far the 32 year old has come from last edition’s disappointment. And he seems to be a cool customer too. Recently, he said that he would be treating the Olympics as just another tournament. While that may sound a bit casual, considering his performances in World events where he was on the podium 6 times, its better that he keeps his mindset that way. With the hype that people create around potential medal prospects, it would do him a lot of good to not put too much pressure on himself. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore could not qualify for this year’s olympics and that is testament to the competition as well as Sodhi’s abilities.

Abhinav Bindra needs no introduction. The first individual to win the gold for India is all geared up to do the double, as they say in football. In spite of not winning any of the competitions before the Olympics, there are high hopes on Bindra as he is known to up his game on the big occassion. He was able to win the gold at Beijing even though there was alleged tampering of his sight screen in the final round. The problem with already winning a gold is that people tend to take for granted that it would be easy to win another one. But the glory of 2008 is in the past and it is important to enter the competition without any pre-conceived notion that he is better than the competitors. There is a thin line between confidence and arrogance, and there are many cases where people have failed because they believed in the hype.

Gagan Narang is the other hot medal prospect in the London games for India. Not only is he competing in 3 different events, he is considered as the most talented of all the 11 shooters that are going to represent India. He is, after all, the world record holder in the 10M air rifle event after he scored a perfect 600 at the 2010 Commonwealth games in Delhi. But the problem with Gagan Narang would be his temperament. When he was denied a deserved Khel Ratna for the 3^rd time, he was very upset and almost refused to shoot in the World Championships. Would he able to hold himself together even if things happen to go wrong in the initial stages? Would an upset in one of the events cause him to lose concentration in the other events? These are questions that can only be answered at the games. But when you compare that with the fact that he has won almost all the medals there are to win, barring the Olympics, you just have the feeling that he will get that elusive medal for the country.

While the remaining 8 shooters in the Shooting contingent for the Olympics are talented, these 3 are seen to be the brightest prospect for any potential medals that can be won. All 3 have done well in the World Championships and are looking to convert their good form to medals at the London Olympics. While it may be too much to expect everyone to do well and get medals for the country, one can only wish them the best of luck and hope that they come good on that particular day and make this great nation proud!