CHENNAI: Indian shooting has come a long way in the last decade or so. Chain Singh is one of the rare shooters to have had a unique involvement during this evolution. In a rapidly-growing market that has constantly generated high-yielding stocks, Chain has been that stock that has weathered unfavourable circumstances over the years to stay relevant. The mild-mannered man from the Army is one of the experienced faces in the national shooting team brimming with hot stocks and potentials. And having captured his first individual World Cup medal recently, the 36-year-old from Chanser (Doda district of Jammu & Kashmir) is now aiming to go higher.
In a tense final of the men's 50m rifle 3 positions event in the season-opener in Buenos Aires, Chain had done just about enough to edge junior counterpart Aishwary Pratap Singh for the final spot in the podium. That was also the country's first medal of the season. Chain and many other Indians were training their guns at the Tiro Federal Argentino de Buenos Aires range for the first time. "The conditions at the range (Buenos Aires) were quite tough. In India, we get somewhat similar kinds of challenges during June, July. It gets windy. So we have faced those kinds of challenges in the past as well. But if you look overall, it was quite tough," Chain recollected.
His wide grasp of the sport helped him navigate the challenge then. The rifle shooter also credited foreign coach Thomas Farnik for India's visible growth in recent times. India ended with an impressive haul of 15 medals (6G, 6S, 3B) in the first two World Cups in Argentina and Peru recently. "Experience matters a lot. The standards of coaches have also gone up in India. Thomas Farnik is an advanced-level coach and has plenty of experience. I could implement a bit of his experience in my game. The level of performance of the shooting team is next level at the moment. There are a lot of things we have learnt in the last four, five years. It has been beneficial and we'll continue to reap benefits in the months to come," he noted.
Chain himself was reaping the rewards of his hard work and persistence at the elite level after a fairly long gap. "I believe in myself. Given that I have been shooting for a long time, I believe in my technique. If I also put my mind outside technique, then you're bound to get distracted. I continue to focus on my process. Gradually, once you follow that mantra, you'll have a strong base. Then if you are able to execute, you would have practised for a long time... things will eventually be in your control. It's all about focus, belief and practice," the former Asian Games medallist said.
The Olympics is considered to be the Holy Grail by most athletes at the amateur level. Indian shooting might be in a position of strength at this hour after three medals in the 2024 Paris Games but that was not the case not so long time ago. That is not to state that they were hopeless and not winning anything. Far from that. Indian shooters were gunning down medals at elite competitions but an Olympic medal had inevitably proven to be beyond their grasp. Chain would know it better as he had experienced that pain first hand during the 2016 Rio Olympics. With a fresh wave of optimism within the squad, Chain's ultimate target is to have another crack at the Olympics. But he's aware that he needs to tread with care in order to come close to attaining that feat. "The ultimate goal is the Olympics. I'll focus on the upcoming competitions and consider that as part of the training process. There are important competitions like the Asian Games and the World Championships that will be held next year. For those competitions, I would like to undergo good preparations. I have to remain focussed," he said.
His immediate target will be the Munich World Cup in June. Chain is part of a 22-member Indian squad and he is expected to return to serious practice soon.