Anjum Moudgil aims to overcome Tokyo setbacks at Paris Olympics 2024

Finishing the Tokyo Olympics without any medals and subsequently losing her place in the Indian shooting contingent has prepared Anjum Moudgil for success in the upcoming Paris Olympics 2024.

In an interview with IANS, former World No. 1 shooter Moudgil said that being left out of the 2022 Asian Games and the World Championships in 2023 was a career blow for her. The setback was compounded by the fact that Moudgil, like the rest of the Indian shooting contingent, failed to win any medals in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

The Tokyo Olympics was a particularly painful experience for the ace shooter, who finished the event with a rank of 15 in the 50m 3p and a rank of 18 in the 10m air rifle.

Taking about her fall from the peak after the recent setbacks, Anjum Moudgil said:

"I don't carry past burdens. Tokyo was disappointed but Paris surely will be the next big thing for me."

“To be selected for Tokyo the last time I qualified, I had to win the quota three years before the games and keep that rank for three more years. But it was tiring, and the competition changed significantly when Covid entered the picture. Being gone for so long was really difficult," she added.

Anjum Moudgil enjoyed a minor comeback after the Tokyo Olympics, winning the silver medal at the Baku World Cup and a bronze at the Changwon World Cup in 2022. By July of that year, she peaked at the 50m 3p world rankings. However, her form faltered, and she was excluded from the Indian team going to the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

After the Asian Games and World Championships exclusion, Anjum Moudgil was not in the right mental space to enjoy the sport that gave her glory.

“I was not well mentally, those years were like very difficult for me. My focus was lost. I was not doing any training and the result that we got in the Tokyo Olympics was quite disheartening to me. Being a former World champion you carry a burden of performance and not being able to rise at the occasion was a difficult period for me,” she said.

However, shifting her focus to other hobbies, such as paragliding, helped her unwind and see from a fresh perspective.

“I tried painting, played guitar, roamed around in the mountains for peace did paragliding for peace that I wanted after the Tokyo Olympics,” she continued.

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Anjum Moudgil shares goals for Paris Olympics 2024

Anjum Moudgil’s hard work and self-care seem to have paid off this time, as she has performed quite well in the National Rifle Association of India’s (NRAI) revised selection trials. After a slow start in the trials, she finished second in the fourth and final selection trial in May, which guaranteed her a sport in the Indian contingent heading to Paris.

Anjum Moudgil also spoke about her preparations for the Paris Olympics 2024, which is scheduled to start on July 26.

“I’m thankful to all the experiences that really didn’t work in my favour last year. The time not being in the team was the best time I could have used for myself to get better,” she said.

Anjum Moudgil, who will represent India in the Women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions event at the upcoming summer Olympics alongside the 22-year-old Sift Kaur Samra, is already training for her events in the games.

She will look to put the Tokyo Olympics in the past and return with a medal this time around.