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Sunday, Dec 10, 2006
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Shooters arrive to a rousing welcome

Principal Correspondent

PHOTO: AP

SWEETER THAN GOLD: Shooter Jaspal Rana kisses his daughter after arrival at the Indira Gandhi International airport in New Delhi.

NEW DELHI: Indian shooters arrived here to a rousing welcome, with the pistol ace Jaspal Rana leading the triumphant team that returned from Doha Asian Games here on Saturday.

"This was by far the best Indian performance, but if shooters are given more support and enough ammunition to practice with, same results could be replicated at the international events," said a beaming Rana, who equalled the world record in centre-fire pistol event.

Shooters have contributed the most to the Indian medal collection in Doha Asiad, winning three gold, five silver and six bronze. This was a quantum jump for Indian shooting after it had returned with just two medals from 2002 Busan Asian Games.

"We need to do more if we have to win medals at the world stage," said Rana, who struck two individual gold medals and led the centre-fire pistol squad to team gold. His other gold came in the standard pistol — both being non-Olympic events.

Eyeing the Olympics

Rana said the medals in Doha have given him the right impetus to remain in the sport for a while. "Now I would focus my energies on Olympic Games," said Rana, but did not elaborate which of the three pistol events he would take up to be in the reckoning in the Olympics team.

Rana said that the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the government were totally unsupportive towards him. "I wish no other shooter is subjected to the kind of humiliation I have gone through," he said, and thanked the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) and fellow shooters who showed faith in his capabilities.

Rana was openly critical of the current pistol coach, Csaba Erno Gyorik, and demanded that the much-respected Tibor Gonczol be called to coach again. This, however, seemed implausible as the Union Government is averse to employing coaches above 70 years. Gonczol is 73.

Better than expected

National coach Prof. Sunny Thomas said he was happy with the performance. "It was more than expected, but we also missed a few medals narrowly, and that is what we would like to eliminate in future," he said.

While the shooters were received with much fanfare, there was — sadly — no such enthusiasm in the reception of the Indian kabaddi team, which had also landed by the same flight with a gold medal in its kitty.

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