Sarnobat will be competing in her second Olympics in Tokyo later this year after representing India at the London Games in 2012.
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Pistol shooter Rahi Sarnobat, who is set to compete in her second Olympics later this year, says her perspective for Tokyo 2020 would be different from her experience at the London Olympics in 2012. “The biggest lesson I got from (London2012) was that as an athlete, we are much more than what we think and believe and that our abilities are higher than what we actually think,” she added.
“I got overwhelmed in London and I was very satisfied just being there. But later, I felt that this was not unachievable, and it was absolutely in my hand, but it was just my thought process,” Rahi said in an interaction with the media, facilitated by the Sports Authority of India. “I will have a different perspective this time.”
Rahi would be competing in the 25m pistol event along with Manu Bhaker. “I believe we are going there as a stronger team,” she said. “There is a huge difference between shooters of my generations and the younger ones. They are more ready than we were as juniors 10 or 15 years ago.”
“This generation is really talented and confident. They respect their seniors and willing to learn from their seniors and they believe in themselves equally and do not see themselves as the weaker part of the team,” she said.
Rahi, who has been part of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports’ Target Olympics Podium Scheme (TOPS) since December 2018, feels the young shooters are ready for the Olympics. “There are days when I ask them how they do what they do and how they think,” she added.
“I seek their opinion, So, this is a discussion and not about me having been there (at the Olympics) and telling them something, it is not like that. Only when they come and ask me that I talk about my experience. They do not have questions about the past experience of the Olympics as they really have had good exposure in the past and good competitions as well and I think they are quite ready for the Olympics.”
The Olympic-bound pistol and rifles shooters would be heading for Zagreb, Croatia on May 10 on board a chartered flight. The camp, planned by the National Rifle Association of India and the Sports Authority of India, has been sanctioned a budget of around Rs. 4 crores by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
The pistol and rifle squad would first head to Zagreb for a camp and then compete as guest shooters in the European Championship from May 20 to June 6 in Osijek.
