In fact, India has at times surpassed China on many occasions to eventually become the champion in major international competitions like the ISSF World Cup series 2019.
India has become one of the powerhouses in Shooting sports, owing to the shooters’ consistency on the international platform. At the Summer Olympics, it all started with Colonel Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore winning the silver medal for India at the Athens Olympics 2014. Then, it was followed by Abhinav Bindra etching his name in history, winning the first-ever Individual gold medal of the nation. He clinched the gold medal in the men’s 10m air rifle competition at the Beijing Olympics 2008. Vijay Kumar (Silver) and Gagan Narang (Bronze) are the two other Olympic medalist shooters who accomplished podium finishes in the same edition (2012). Although India hasn’t tasted success in shooting at the Olympics since then, the nation has collected numerous medals at various editions of the World Cup and World Championships. In fact, India has at times surpassed China on many occasions to eventually become the champion in major international competitions like the ISSF World Cup series 2019. We now take a look at the top three Indian shooters who excelled in the year 2022 in both international and national competitions.
At the ISSF Junior World Championships 2021 in Lima, Peru, Rudrankksh made news for the first time in 2021 when he won the silver medal after closely losing to Tokyo Olympic champion William Shaner of the United States of America in the gold medal match. The Indian lost the gold medal by the narrowest of margins with a final score of 250 compared to Shaner’s 250.7 in the final. He had previously earned a score of 630.2 to advance to the final.
The 18-year-first old’s major competition saw him win the men’s 10m air rifle world championship and guarantee India a spot in the Paris Olympics in 2024. In the final, he defeated Italian Danilo Dennis Sollazzo 17–13. His score of 633.9 earned him the top spot in the qualification round. In the gold medal match, Rudrankksh, who was appearing in his first World Championship, was down 4-10. After the Italian shooter initially held the lead for the majority of the competition, the Indian shooter staged an astonishing comeback to become the world champion.
After regaining possession of the World title, Rudrankksh won the ISSF President’s Cup 2022 by defeating his World Championship opponent, Italy’s Danilo Dennis Sollazzo, with a final score of 16-8. With this, he received the Golden Target award from the International Shooting Sport Federation, which is given to the best athlete in a given category each year (ISSF). Rudrankksh was named World No. 1 in the latest ISSF rankings after impressive performances in several ISSF tournaments and consistency throughout the season.
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Tokyo Olympian Anjum Moudgil started her medal haul this year with a silver medal at the ISSF World Cup Baku 2022 in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions. Anjum placed fourth among 60 shooters and earned a score of 587 out of 600 to advance to the top-eight ranking round. In stage two, she finished second to Denmark’s Rikke Maeng Ibsen, earning a 406.5 to the Norwegian’s 411.4. In the final, she made a fierce challenge but was unable to overcome her Danish rival and lost by 12-16.
Her next victory was when she clinched a bronze medal at the ISSF World Cup Series in Changwon, Korea where she picked the bronze medal in the same event. Anjum qualified in sixth place with a total of 586 and missed the opportunity to compete for the gold medal by 0.5 points. This was her third individual World Cup medal in the three-positions discipline. Her consistent performances throughout the ISSF competitions rewarded her as she was named the World No.1 in the World Shooting rankings.
However, the World Championships 2022 in Cairo, Egypt, didn’t go as expected for Anjum. Although Anjum qualified for the ranking round, she narrowly missed out on a medal finishing sixth in the round. A top four place would have ensured India a quota for the Paris Olympics 2024. In fact, her making to the ranking round itself was a testimony of her consistency as the number of competitors in the tournament were significantly higher than the other tournaments she participated in.
Anjum ended the year with a silver-medal triumph at the second edition of the ISSF President’s Cup, the tournament which oversees world’s best 12 shooters in each discipline competing for the Golden Target Award. Anjum was defeated by Germany’s Anna Janssen by 14-16 in the gold medal match while shooting at the Egypt International Olympic City (EIOC) range. Anjum scored 591 in the qualifications to place fourth and advance to the ranking round, thus shattering the previous National record in the women’s rifle 3 positions. The Indian ace shooter dominated the ranking round with a powerful 412.9, finishing 1.8 points ahead of Anna, who fired 411.1 to place second and join Anjum in the final clash. The 28-year-old had also clinched the bronze medal at the National Games 2022 which was held after a seven-year gap.
Tilottama Sen drew everyone’s attention during the National Games 2022 when she astonished her experienced rivals with a stunning shooting performance in the Women’s 10m Air Rifle Qualification, scoring 633.6 points. People were taken aback by her qualification score, which she shot at the National Games as it is regarded World class/Olympic-level shooting. She then clinched the silver medal after being defeated by Tokyo Olympian Elavenil Valarivan 16-10. She subsequently continued her dream run in the World Championships Cairo 2022, winning the bronze medal after topping the qualification round with a score of 633 in the junior category.
Both the women’s individual and team gold medals at the Asian Airgun Championship 2022 were claimed by Tilottama. Tilottama, together with Ramita and Nancy, assisted her team in winning the gold the day after she won the junior 10m air rifle competition. If she continues in this path, India may not be too far away from witnessing its youngest-ever Olympic medalist.