All posts tagged: Swapnil Kusale

ISSF World C’ships: Samrat Rana crowned men’s 10m air pistol world champion

ISSF World C’ships: Samrat Rana crowned men’s 10m air pistol world champion

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In a historic evening for Indian shooting, Samrat Rana was crowned the men’s 10m air pistol world champion at the 2025 ISSF World Championships in Cairo, Egypt on Monday. Rana became the first Indian ever to win the individual air pistol gold medal at the prestigious competition. He is also just the fifth Indian after Abhinav Bindra, Rudrankksh Patil, Tejaswini Sawant, Shiva Narwal-Esha Singh and to win the world championships in an Olympic event. Rana started off well in the final and was leading by 0.3 points at the end of the first two-shot elimination. He, however, soon lost the lead to fellow Indian Varun Tomar and fell as low as the third spot after the fourth round of elimination. It was a tense final with Rana’s 181.2, placing him third just 0.2 shy of Tomar, who occupied the gold medal position then. Rana then turned things around spectacularly in the next six shots, including two perfect 10.9s as he clinched the gold medal. He needed a 10.3 or more with his final shot to …

ISSF World C’ships: Manu Bhaker, Suruchi to lead India’s 40-member contingent

ISSF World C’ships: Manu Bhaker, Suruchi to lead India’s 40-member contingent

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India’s top shooters are ready for one of the biggest competitions of the year, the ISSF World Championships Rifle/Pistol, scheduled to take place in Cairo, Egypt, from 8 to 17 November. A 40-member Indian contingent will represent the country, featuring Olympic medalists Manu Bhaker and Swapnil Kusale, along with former world champion Rudrankksh Patil. Can India win multiple Individual golds? India has produced several world-class shooters in recent years, but translating that dominance into individual gold medals at the World Championships has been a challenge. In the men’s rifle events, India has had only two individual world champions in the last two decades, Abhinav Bindra in 2006 and Rudrankksh Patil in 2022. On the women’s side, Tejaswini Sawant remains the only Indian woman to have won an individual world title, achieving the feat back in 2010 in the 50m Rifle Prone event. This year, a new generation of shooters, including Suruchi Singh and Manu Bhaker, will aim to end the 15-year wait for another Indian woman to claim an individual gold. Meanwhile, Rudrankksh Patil, the …

Shooting League of India to debut on November 24

Shooting League of India to debut on November 24

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Shooting League of India (SLI) is set to make its debut later this year, running from November 24 to December 7, the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) announced on Friday. This marks a significant step towards introducing a franchise-based shooting competition in the country. The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF), the global governing body for Olympic shooting, has officially recognized the league and allocated a November-December slot in its annual calendar, giving the competition international status. Originally scheduled to take place in March 2025, the Shooting League of India faced delays but now has the full backing of the ISSF. NRAI President Kalikesh Narayana Singh Deo, who has been at the forefront of bringing this league to life, emphasized the importance of ISSF’s support. “With ISSF officially recognizing the Shooting League of India and granting it an official slot in its international calendar, it has now become a global event. This will help us attract some of the world’s best shooters to the competition,” Kalikesh told PTI. To ensure smooth execution and commercial success …

Jaspal Rana, Deepali Deshpande return to national coaching setup | Sport-others News

Jaspal Rana, Deepali Deshpande return to national coaching setup | Sport-others News

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Dronacharya Awardee coach Deepali Deshpande and Manu Bhaker’s coach Jaspal Rana returned to the national shooting coaching setup, announced NRAI on Saturday. In the recently held governing body meeting of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), the body decided to appoint Deepali Deshpande as the head coach of Rifle and Jaspal Rana as the High-performance coach of 25m pistol. Deepali’s student Swapnil Kusale won the bronze medal in the 50m rifle three positions at the 2024 Paris Olympics, while Jaspal guided Manu Bhaker to two bronze medals in the 10m air pistol event at the quadrennial event. Story continues below this ad India won a total of three medals at the 2024 Paris, with two coming in individual events: Swapnil (50m 3P) and Manu (10m air Pistol), while the third medal came in a 10m air pistol team event where Manu paired up with Sarabjot Singh. In all, a total of 16 new members were appointed to the coaching team, with 19 being retained, including one coordinator (Amar Jung Singh) and two coaches (Priti …

“Lucky to win alongside coach,” says Arjuna awardee Swapnil Kusale

“Lucky to win alongside coach,” says Arjuna awardee Swapnil Kusale

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The 2024 Paris Olympics medallist Swapnil Kusale was honoured with the Arjuna award along with 31 others by the President of India at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday. Kusale had won a bronze medal in men’s 50m rifle 3 positions event in the quadrennial event at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre in France. His long-time coach Deepali Deshpande, meanwhile, was handed the Dronacharya Award – Indian sports’ highest coaching honour – at the same ceremony. “It’s a special day for me,” said Kusale, in an conversation with The Bridge, following the award ceremony. “Every athlete dreams of winning an award together with their coach. “I got the opportunity this time and I am very lucky for that,” he added. ‘Will try to win Khel Ratna next’ Meanwhile, Ajeet Singh Yadav, who was also honoured with the Arjuna Award, expressed his desire to pocket the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna – India’s highest sporting honour – next time. “I am wearing a maroon blazer right now,” said Yadav. “The aim is to try and earn a Khel …

India’s Paris Olympics winners, including star shooters, complain about discoloured medals, want them replaced | Sport-others News

India’s Paris Olympics winners, including star shooters, complain about discoloured medals, want them replaced | Sport-others News

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The medals of some of India’s Olympic heroes from the 2024 Paris Games, and those belonging to many of the greatest athletes from around the world, have shown signs of rust and deterioration, and could be replaced. The Indian Express contacted some of the Indians who climbed the podium in Paris and they said their prized possessions were not in the best condition. Shooting bronze medallists Swapnil Kusale and Sarabjot Singh have complained that the colour had started to come off within days of the podium ceremony. “The colour of the bronze medal came off within seven days of winning the medal. When I reached India, friends, coaches and fellow shooters also pointed that out. An Olympic medal is a cherished possession for a shooter and the removal of coating was visible. All who saw the medal noticed that,” Kusale, 50m 3-Position bronze medallist, said. Sarabjot, who won the mixed team medal with Manu Bhaker, also had a similar complaint. “I too had noticed the discolouring of the medal a few days after the ceremony …

Paralympians dominate list as Khel Ratna goes to Praveen Kumar, Gukesh, Manu Bhaker, Harmanpreet Singh

Paralympians dominate list as Khel Ratna goes to Praveen Kumar, Gukesh, Manu Bhaker, Harmanpreet Singh

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On the back of a historic Paralympics campaign, the National Sports Awards list this time comprises more para-athletes than able-bodied ones, with Paris Games champion Praveen Kumar among those chosen for the country’s highest sporting honour, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. Recently-crowned chess world champion D Gukesh, Olympic double-medallist shooter Manu Bhaker and Harmanpreet Singh, who led the hockey team to its second successive podium finish, were other athletes to be awarded the Khel Ratna, the Sports Ministry said on Thursday. Apart from four Khel Ratna, the ministry announced 32 Arjuna Awardees, 17 of them Paralympians. The Khel Ratna winners receive a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh along with a citation and a medallion. The Arjuna awardees are given Rs 15 lakh as cash reward, a statuette of Arjuna and a citation. The award ceremony will be held in New Delhi on January 17. India’s first Paralympic gold medallist Mulikant Petkar, who won the top honour in the 50m freestyle swimming event at the 1972 Heidelberg Paralympics, was awarded the Arjuna Award …

My Diary 2024: Swapnil Kusale – 2024 gave me Olympic bronze, but road to winning gold at LA begins in 2025 | Sport-others News

My Diary 2024: Swapnil Kusale – 2024 gave me Olympic bronze, but road to winning gold at LA begins in 2025 | Sport-others News

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As a hectic year of sports gallops to the finish line, India’s top athletes pause and reflect; tell the stories of their podium highs, battered bodies and shattered dreams. In a special series, some look back with fondness, a few others with regrets. But all with the hope – and wish – of a better 2025. 2024 will always remain in my memories. Firstly, I won the Olympic bronze medal and secondly it happened in my birth month (I won the Olympic medal on August 1 and August 6 is my birthday). Obviously the bronze medal belongs to the nation first. When I visited the Chateauroux Shooting Range earlier for the Olympic Test event, there were no flags or Olympic Rings. My focus at that time was to concentrate on my practice and to shoot to the best of my abilities. Since we trained there for a while, it helps each of us to gauge the weather and get used to the range. These factors play a huge role in shaping up your ultimate goal. …

Kiran beats Olympic medalist Swapnil to win 50m 3P title

Kiran beats Olympic medalist Swapnil to win 50m 3P title

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Rifle shooter Kiran Ankush Jadhav overcame the challenge from two Olympians including the Paris Olympic bronze medalist Swapnil Anil Kusale to win the men’s 50m three positions (3P) title at the M.P. State Shooting Academy range on Wednesday. Representing the Navy at the National Shooting Championships, Kiran defeated Olympic medalist Kusale (Railways) and local boy Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar in the final. The navy man shot 465.8 in the final to leave double-Olympian Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar of the home state in second place on a score of 463.1. Swapnil, after leading the 45-shot final till the 40th shot, bowed out in third ahead of the final gold-deciding shot, with a tally of 451.8. Earlier, the railwayman had topped the qualification with a world-class score of 593, leaving Aishwary a point behind in second in that match. Kiran had qualified fourth with a solid 590. However, both the gold and silver medallists pulled out the big shots when it mattered most, to finish ahead of Swapnil, who after leading at every stage of the final …

Maharashtra govt announces Rs 1 crore for Vidit Gujrathi, Divya Deshmukh

Maharashtra govt announces Rs 1 crore for Vidit Gujrathi, Divya Deshmukh

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The Maharashtra government announced Rs 1 crore each for Chess Olympiad 2024 winners Vidit Gujrathi and Divya Deshmukh on Monday. Grandmaster Vidit and International Master Divya were part of the Indian men’s and women’s teams at the 45th Chess Olympiad in September in Hungary. The coaches of the Indian teams Abhijeet Kunte and Sankalp Gupta received Rs 10 lakh each. The Indian men’s team, featuring Vidit, R Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and D Gukesh, won the Chess Olympiad after they defeated Slovenia 3.5-0.5 in the final round. The women’s team of Divya, R Vaishali, D Harika, Vantika Agrawal and Tania Sachdev bested Azerbaijan in their final round to win the event. Hailing the performance of the Indian teams, the social media handle of CMO Maharashtra wrote, “The Indian team has achieved a historic feat by winning the gold medal in the 45th Chess Olympiad held from 10th to 23rd September, 2024.” “The team included state chess players Vidit Gujarathi and Divya Deshmukh, both of whom were presented with Rs.1 crore each by the Chief Minister @mieknathshinde, …