Gagan Narang loves challenges. He faced a unique challenge during the Munich World Championships earlier this year. Overlooked for the third time for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the highest sports award in the country, the ace shooter felt demoralized. He had to overcome bafflement, disappointment and anger before participating in the 10m air rifle event. National coach Sunny Thomas and the Indian team’s foreign coach Stanislav Lapidus had to coax him back into action. “I was really shattered. I did not have the motivation to shoot. But thanks to my coaches, I participated. To be honest, I had to fight my emotions to stay cool. Fortunately, I could shoot bronze,” says the 26-year-old. “It was not a normal final…” he recalls. “I could have shot better.”
Gagan clinched the bronze on the opening day of the 50th World Shooting Championships in Munich. He shot a score of 597 (100,100,100,99,99,99) in the qualification round to make it into the final in fifth place. He was tied with three others on 597 after qualification. In the final, Gagan shot a score of 102, which helped him climb to the bronze medal position in a very strong field of 128 shooters.
By winning the bronze, Gagan also became the first Indian to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics as the top six shooters were awarded Olympic quotas in this event.
For Gagan, it was a victory of sorts. “It was a huge moment for me,” he says. After silencing critics with his show in Munich, Gagan looks back on the official recognition that still eludes him. “I have been consistent and I have been shooting medals in all major events. It hurts when you are ignored,” he says, referring to the Khel Ratna award.
He makes it clear that he has no grudge against Saina Nehwal, who won the award this year. She deserves the honour. But he suggests that perhaps the award could have been conferred on more than one athlete — as was the case last year when it was jointly won by world champion boxer Mary Kom and Olympic medallists, boxer Vijender Singh and wrestler Sushil Kumar.
Overlooked for the third time in three years, Gagan threatened to pull out of the Commonwealth Games but better sense finally prevailed.
“Like with any other athlete, awards and recognition do motivate me to perform better,” he reasons. “Being ignored for three years in a row is as good as an insult. I want to focus on the upcoming Commonwealth Games. I want to better my performance in the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games, where I won six medals. I will let my rifle do the talking.”
The Commonwealth Games will put Gagan back in his comfort zone. Setting records and winning medals on the world stage is nothing new for this Hyderabad-based shooter. Gagan says he has always been fascinated by guns. “Shooting has excited me since childhood. It is a harmless sport. But it needs a lot of hard work and devotion,” he says.
In fact, even during his spare time, he shoots at home by making temporary arrangements. He is grateful to his parents for the sacrifices they have made, including selling land so that he could purchase shooting equipment.
Starting his international career in style by shooting gold in the 10m air-rifle event in the 2003 Afro-Asian Games in Hyderabad, Gagan created two world records in the finals of the World Cup in Bangkok in 2008 after the Beijing Olympics.
In fact, he shot a perfect 600 out of 600 in the preliminary phase to equal the world record jointly held by Tavarit Majchacheep of Thailand and Denis Sokolov of Russia.
How does he maintain his consistently high levels? “I do a lot of yoga and mental training. Shooting requires a lot of mental training. Hitting the bulls eye from 10m is challenging. It needs a lot of practice and mental toughness.”
Gagan agrees that shooting is not a spectator-friendly sport. But at the same time, it is one sport that can bring glory to the country in the World Championships and Olympics. “Shooting should be encouraged in schools and colleges. It should be promoted in a more systematic and vigorous way,” he says.
India already has a silver (Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore at Athens 2004) and gold medallist (Abhinav Bindra at Beijing 2008) in the Olympics. These two examples serve as inspiration for young shooters.
Gagan, who is currently world No 4, is hopeful that his hard work and achievements will be appreciated and recognised more. Till then, the 2012 London Olympics remains his biggest goal. There, Gagan will be up against the biggest challenge of his career. “I am aware that wining medals in the Olympics gets shooters recognition in our country. That will be my goal,” he winds up.
das@expressbuzz.com