Swapnil Kusale after winning bronze medal in Paris Olympics 2024.© AFP

India shooter Swapnil Kusale at Paris Olympics 2024© AFP

Following Swapnil Kusale’s historic bronze medal win in shooting at the ongoing Paris Olympics, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha lauded the shooter for his performance and talked about her own emotions while catching up with the match. Kusale won the bronze medal in the men’s 50m rifle 3P event at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Thursday. Kusale also became the first Indian shooter to win a medal in the men’s 50m rifle 3P event.

Following the win, while talking to ANI, Usha said, “It was very exciting and a proud moment for us. I was so nervous and my heart was beating so fast because at one point he was sixth, he climbed upto fourth. From there, he reached the second spot and then went down to fourth. The last minute was exciting.”

Usha expressed happiness with the shooting contingent, who has grabbed all the three (all bronze) medals won at Paris so far, saying that they are making history by putting up their best-ever Olympics performance.

On Manu Bhaker’s double bronze and the possibility of a medal hat-trick after the women’s 25 m pistol event, Usha said that medals were being expected from Manu.

“We were in contact with the coach Jaspal Rana, we helped him whenever he had problems. We knew that Manu was going to win. Now, we are expecting another medal from her,” said Usha.

Talking about the expectations from athletics contingent, she said that athletics is a very tough discipline and medals are being expected from defending javelin throw champion Neeraj Chopra and steeplechase racers.

On whether India will touch double figures in Paris, Usha said, “It should be. By the time we host 2036 Olympics, for which we are trying, we should be expecting a top 10 finish in Olympics.”

Kusale clinched the bronze medal for India in the 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men’s Final after finishing in third place with an aggregate of 451.4. He secured India’s 3rd medal in shooting overall.

Earlier in the qualification round, Indian shooter Swapnil Kusale finished seventh in the qualification round of men’s 50m 3P to qualify for the final at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Wednesday.

Indian shooters Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Swapnil Kusale both appeared in the men’s 50m 3P qualification round at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

On his Olympic debut, Kusale finished seventh with a score of 590-38x. While Tomar ranked 11th with a total of 589-33x. Only the top eight shooters qualified for the final round, and Tomar failed to make his place in the final round.

People’s Republic of China’s Liu Yukun registered the qualification Olympic record with a total of 594-38x.

Kusale was also the first Indian shooter to make a place in the men’s 50m rifle 3P medal event at the Olympics.

Earlier at the multi-sport event, India shooter Manu Bhaker opened the nation’s account with a bronze medal in the women’s 10m air pistol event.

The Paris Olympics has been a redemption arc for Manu after her pistol malfunctioned at the Tokyo Olympics. She made history by becoming the first Indian woman in 20 years to reach a shooting final in an individual event of the Olympics since Suma Shirur in 2004.

The Indian shooting duo of Manu and Sarabjot Singh got the better of South Korea’s Lee Wonho and Oh Ye Jin 16-10 in the bronze medal play-off match in the 10m air pistol mixed team event.

The parents of Olympic shooting bronze medalist Swapnil Kusale on Thursday said they were sure he would win a medal for the “tricolour and the country”. “We let him focus on his work and didn’t even call him yesterday so that he should not get distracted,” Swapnil’s father Suresh Kusale told reporters in Kolhapur, soon after their son won a bronze for India in Paris. “For the last 10 to 12 years, he was mostly away from home, focusing on his marksmanship. I was sure he would win a medal for India and wouldn’t let the tricolour down. “People have been calling up incessantly to congratulate us,” said Suresh, a school teacher. As Swapnil shot to glory in the 50m rifle 3 positions event, taking India’s tally to three at the Paris Games on Thursday, his family and friends exploded in joy at his home in Kolhapur district.

His mother Anita, who had been praying just moments before, burst into tears. Other family members and neighbours watching the event live exulted, filling the air with “Bharat Mata ki Jai”.

Suresh said they could not put into words the efforts they had made for their son over the last several years. “But it was his sheer hard work and determination that paid off today,” said the ecstatic father, who apparently spent about Rs 25 lakh on Swapnil’s training.

As he expressed immense pride in Swapnil for bringing fame to their village, Suresh also thanked his coach, Dipali Deshpande, saying she took great care of him.

Swapnil’s mother said the family hails from Kambalwadi village in Radhanagari tehsil of Kolhapur district in western Maharashtra.

“He studied in a public school and developed a liking for shooting while at Sangli,” she said. He later went to Nashik for further training in the sport, added Anita, who is also the sarpanch of their village.

Swapnil’s brother expressed his gratitude to all the countrymen for supporting and believing in the 28-year-old shooter.

The medal for Swapnil comes following the stunning performance of Manu Bhaker, who clinched the women’s 10m air pistol and mixed team 10m air pistol bronze alongside Sarabjot Singh.

Swapnil, who finished seventh in a tightly-contested qualification on Wednesday, has been working as a Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) in the Central Railway’s Pune division since 2015 and is a big fan of cricket icon MS Dhoni.

“I don’t follow anyone specific in the shooting world. Outside of that, I admire Dhoni for the person that he is. My sport requires me to be as calm and patient as he is on the field. I also relate to his story as I am a ticket collector like he was,” Kusale had told PTI on Wednesday.