Manu Bhaker is the first woman to win an Olympics medal in the shooting discipline. (Image: AP)
The Indian’s trailblazing win was the first-ever medal secured by an Indian woman in Shooting at the Olympics.
It wasn’t merely any win, it was a landmark victory for Indians and Indian women in general, as Manu Bhaker brought home glory in the form of a bronze medal in the 10m Air Pistol event at the Paris Olympics today.
The 22-year-old not only brought in the nation’s first medal at the Paris Olympics, but also in the process created history for multiple reasons.
The Indian’s trailblazing win was the first-ever medal secured by an Indian woman in Shooting at the Olympics.
Following her win, the head coach of the Indian Shooting contingent at the Paris Olympics, Suma Shirur shared her elation on Bhaker’s win.
“I am just as happy as every other Indian right now. I was wondering why it took so long for us to clinch another medal in the sport again. For Manu to not just make it to the final, but to also win a medal, it completely changess the outlook of the sport now. It is huge,” stated Shirur.
#WATCH | Paris: On Shooter Manu Bhaker winning Bronze medal in Women’s 10 M Air Pistol at #ParisOlympics2024, Head Coach Indian Shooting contingent, Suma Shirur, says, “Every Indian is very proud…Manu won a medal and the entire outlook changes. It is huge…” pic.twitter.com/WS7bS5olLT— ANI (@ANI) July 28, 2024
When asked about the preparation that Bhaker and the rest of the contingent underwent leading up to the Olympics, Shirur opened up on the importance of blocking out the voices from outside and to just trust the process.
“We have been working at the same, to block out the noises and to hone in on ourselves and our craft. There was quite a bit of negativity attached to the sport of shooting, which was not easy to bear. But, as coaches, our only goal is to do out job and to improve in every single way possible.
“If the improvement leads to medals, the merrier we are. So, we try to focus on the process only.”
In a milestone victory, Bhaker finally brought an end to a 12-year medal drought for the Indian contingent in Shooting at the Olympics, bringing India their fifth medal in Shooting across their Olympics history.
She finished her run in the 10m air pistol final after 22 shots, scoring 221.7, falling just 0.1 short of overthrowing second placed Yeji Kim in the penultimate series, thereby clinching the bronze.
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