“We are proud of him” - Central Railway to appoint Paris 2024 Olympics bronze medalist Swapnil Kusale as OSD

Indian rifleman Swapnil Kusale, who won the bronze medal in the ongoing Paris 2024 Olympics, will be promoted to the officer-grade rank of Officer on Special Duty (OSD) as a result of the victory, Central Railway GM Ramkaran Yadav confirmed.

“This is a big thing for our Central Railway that one of the employees [Swapnil] has won a bronze medal in the 50m rifle. We are proud of him… He will soon be promoted to official grade and will be appointed as an OSD,” Yadav told ANI reporters.

Kusale, 28, who hails from Kambalwadi village in western Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district, presently works as a Traveling Ticket Examiner (TTE) with the Pune Railway Division of Central Railways.

The Central Railways congratulated Kusale after his bronze-winning performance, posting on X:

“Congratulations to Central Railway’s Employee Swapnil Kusale for winning bronze medal in the Men’s 50m Rifle 3 positions final for India at Paris Olympics 2024. Entire Nation and Central Railway is proud of you!”

Swapnil Kusale creates history after winning India's first 50-rifle 3-position medal in the Olympics

Swapnil Kusale’s bronze medal win in the 50m rifle 3 positions event at the Paris 2024 Olympics was historic. It was the first-ever Olympic medal won by an Indian shooter in that specific event.

The medal has turned Kusale into a household name overnight. The rifle shooter is no stranger to success, having already won gold medals in the 2021 ISSF World Cup and the 2022 Asian Games.

However, Kusale had only managed to secure the seventh position in the qualifying round, and few expected him to finish the event with a medal. However, Kusale blazed to a podium finish after scoring 156.8 (prone), 153.3 (kneeling), and 195 (standing) points, securing third place behind China’s Liu Yukun and Ukraine’s Serhiy Kulish.