Indian shooters Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh delivered a stellar performance to win the bronze medal, raising India’s medal count to two at the Paris Olympics. The duo triumphed over the Republic of Korea with a score of 16-10 following 13 shots in the final round of mixed 10m Air Pistol team event.
In the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Qualification Round, Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh showed their precision and skill, securing a combined score of 580. This impressive performance placed them among the top contenders, earning them a spot in the bronze medal shoot-off.
Their outstanding display in the final round capped off a remarkable campaign adding another proud achievement to their names and to India’s medal tally. This also marks Manu’s second bronze medal at Paris Olympics 2024, a feat achieved by no other Indian since independence.
Sarabjot Singh has been a Khelo India athlete since 2019 and has participated in 4 Khelo India Games as well as is a Target Olympic Podium Scheme athlete as has been Manu Bhaker.
Hailing from a farmer’s family in Ambala, Punjab, Sarabjot Singh is known for his maturity and grounded nature, despite his achievements in the sport, according to a Hindustan Times report. His self-confidence had led many experts to believe he could secure a podium finish at the Olympics. Sarabjot’s promising career began with a gold medal at the 2019 Junior World Championship and he has continued to impress with a team gold at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou and an individual bronze at the 2023 Asian Championships.
Sarabjot Singh’s major achievements:
Asian Games (2022): Gold medal in the team event and silver in the mixed team event.
Asian Championship, Korea (2023): Bronze medal in the 10m air pistol individual event, securing an Olympics 2024 quota place for India.
World Cup, Bhopal (2023): Gold medal in the individual event.
World Cup, Baku (2023): Gold medal in the mixed team event.
Junior World Cup, Suhl (2022): Gold in the team event and two silver medals in the individual and mixed team events.
Junior World Championship, Lima (2021): Two gold medals in the team and mixed team events.
On Sunday, Manu Bhaker won her first bronze medal in the 10-meter air pistol event.
Shooting stars of India
India has won six medals in shooting at the Olympics. The country’s performance in individual events at the Olympic Games had not been very promising in the last century as medals have been few and far between. However, things changed rapidly in the 21st century as Indian shooters began to win the elusive individual Olympic medals consistently.
It all started when Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore shot to glory with a silver medal at Athens 2004 and triggered a turn of events that saw four other Indians finish on the podium at the Summer Games. Army man Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore made headlines in 2004 when he became the first Indian to win an Olympics individual silver medal post-independence.
The shotgun shooter from Jaipur had already made a name for himself heading into the Athens Games, having won the gold medal at the 2002 Commonwealth Games and followed it with a bronze at the 2003 World Championships.
In Athens, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore did not have the best of starts in the double-trap event, finishing the qualifier in the fifth position. However, he was able to make the final cut since he was in the top six led by the UAE’s Ahmed Al Maktoum.
In the final, Ahmed Al Maktoum maintained his lead to clinch the gold medal with ease but there was a tough competition for second place.
Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore overcame a stiff challenge from China’s Wang Zheng to clinch the silver medal and etched his name in the history books.
After Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore’s success at the previous Games, hopes were high from the Indian shooting contingent, especially Abhinav Bindra. The Dehradun-born Abhinav had set an Olympic record in the qualification round at the Athens Olympics but could not sustain his form in the final. Four years later, Abhinav Bindra was all set to take another shot at glory.
The Indian shooter finished fourth in the qualifying round but blazed through in the final to tie with Henri Hakkinen from Finland with one shot remaining. In the final attempt, Abhinav Bindra shot an almost-perfect 10.8 to bag the gold medal as Hakkinen managed only 9.7. It was India’s first-ever individual Olympic gold and remained the only one till Neeraj Chopra joined the exclusive club at Tokyo 2020.
India enjoyed immense success at the London Games and the shooting contingent, including Gagan Narang, was a big reason for it. After a disappointing outing at the Beijing Olympics, Gagan Narang gave a fine performance in London to sail into the final while defending champion Abhinav Bindra exited in the qualification round. In the final at the Royal Artillery Barracks, Gagan Narang continued his splendid run by consistently shooting in the 10s and ended with 701.1 to claim the bronze medal – India’s first medal at the London Olympics.
Eight years after Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore won the silver medal in Athens, another army man Vijay Kumar claimed India’s second silver in shooting. This time in a rifle event. A Subedar in the Indian army, Vijay Kumar headed to London as the Commonwealth Games champion and qualified for the final rounds in fourth position. Since the new shooting rules did not carry the qualification scores in the final, Vijay Kumar had the opportunity to start afresh and advance.
As other shooters kept dropping out in the eliminations, Vijay Kumar shot brilliantly to move ahead till the final two remained. However, Cuba’s Leuris Pupo had already taken a comfortable lead heading into the final shot and the Indian rifle shooter ended in second place for a silver.