Manu Bhaker won a historic bronze medal in 10m air pistol shooting to give India a boost at the Paris Olympics (AP)
Shimla, July 28: Manu Bhaker gave India a boost at the Paris Olympics on Sunday by winning a historic bronze medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event. She became the first Indian woman to win a medal in shooting, ending a 12-year wait for an overall Olympic medal in shooting. The last time India won medals at the Olympics was in 2012 at the London Olympics, when rapid-fire pistol shooter Vijay Kumar won silver and 10m air rifle shooter Gagan Narang won bronze.
Three years can boost your confidence immensely. A pistol malfunction during qualification at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 had left Bhaker in tears, but this time she was a completely different shooter. From contemplating retirement after heartbreak at the Tokyo Games to winning a historic bronze medal in Paris, Manu has become the latest example of redemption in sports.
“After Tokyo, I was very disappointed and it took me a very long time to get over it. To be honest, I can’t really explain how good I am feeling today,” Bhaker said.
Manu, who became the third Indian woman to enter the final round of an individual shooting event at the Olympics, finished third with 580 in the qualification round, scoring 221.7 in the final to win the bronze medal.
She was in contention for the silver medal with a 0.1 point lead over South Korea’s Kim Yeji but in the final shot, the Indian registered 10.3 points while the Korean shot 10.5 to win the silver.
Oh Ye Jin of South Korea won the gold by breaking the Olympic record. She shot a total of 243.2 points, bettering Vitalina Batsarkshkina’s previous record of 240.3.
The ‘history’ of Manu Bhaker’s Olympic medal-
Bhaker, who hails from Jhajjar in Haryana, showed a natural affinity for athletics from a young age. Being involved in tennis, skating, boxing and the martial art of Thang Ta, she made a mark at the national level in these disciplines.
A pivotal moment came in 2016 when, inspired by the Rio Olympics, the 14-year-old Manu became interested in shooting. Within a week, she convinced her father Ram Kishan Bhaker to buy her a sports pistol, marking the beginning of her remarkable journey.
Manu’s spectacular success began in 2017, when she stunned the nation by winning the National Shooting Championships title, beating Olympian Heena Sidhu with a record-breaking score of 242.3 in the 10m air pistol final.
Subsequent triumphs include a silver medal at the Asian Junior Championships and a consistent display of exceptional talent on the international stage. At the 2018 Asian Games, she shot a Games record of 593 in the qualification round of the 25m air pistol event but missed out on a medal, finishing sixth.
Manu’s star shone at the 2018 Youth Olympics where she won the gold medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event, becoming the first Indian shooter and female athlete to achieve this feat.
Under the guidance of coach Jaspal Rana, she further cemented her dominance by topping the Olympic selection trials T4 10m air pistol final, defeating Asian Games champion Palak by a huge margin of 4.4 points.
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