ISSF World Championship: After Asian Games dip, Indian shooters face early LA28 qualification test

DOHA: India's leading shooters will return to action when the ISSF World Championship (Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun) gets underway here on Sunday, with barely any time to recover from the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya and a point to prove after a below-par showing in Japan.

With the qualification race for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics also beginning at the prestigious competition, India's big names will be eager to put the Asian Games disappointment behind them and get their Olympic campaign off to a strong start.

India's shooting medal haul at the Asian Games suffered a sharp fall, dropping from 22 in Hangzhou in 2023 (seven gold, nine silver and six bronze) to just 15 in Aichi-Nagoya (three gold, eight silver and four bronze). The setback should serve as a wake-up call for the National Rifle Association of India and trigger a hard look at the reasons behind the slide.

Double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker, Esha Singh, Elavenil Valarivan and several other established shooters fell short of gold, while China and other leading shooting nations enjoyed a stronger campaign.

The focus now shifts to Doha, where there is much more than world titles at stake. The championships mark the start of the Olympic qualification process for Los Angeles 2028, with 36 quota places on offer across the 12 individual Olympic events, three in each discipline.

It is the biggest single opportunity to secure Olympic berths during the entire qualification cycle.

Securing early quotas would give India some breathing space and allow its shooters to focus on preparations, domestic trials and the demanding road to Los Angeles. With India also harbouring ambitions of hosting the 2036 Olympics, performances at major international competitions will be closely watched as the country seeks to establish itself among the world's leading sporting nations.

One of India's biggest hopes will be Neeru Dhanda, who emerged as a standout performer at the Asian Games. The trap shooter returned from Japan with two gold medals, winning the individual and mixed team events, besides adding a women's team silver to her impressive haul.

Her performance provided a major boost to Indian shooting and makes her one of the country's leading medal prospects in Doha. Suruchi Inder Singh, who has enjoyed an impressive run on the World Cup circuit and won the 10m air pistol mixed team gold at the Asian Games, will also be among those to watch.

There were encouraging signs in Aichi-Nagoya despite the dip in India's gold medal count, with several shooters, including Elavenil and Esha, coming close to the top podium spot before settling for lesser medals.

However, their inability to close out crucial finals has once again put the high-performance coaching programme, headed by Pierre Beauchamp and comprising foreign and Indian coaches, under scrutiny, particularly given the considerable manpower and financial resources invested in the setup without a commensurate return in results.

The challenge for the coaching setup will be to help Indian shooters handle pressure better and convert promising positions into gold medals. India has invested considerably in its high-performance programme, and the World Championships will provide another opportunity to assess how effectively the system is preparing its athletes to take on powerhouses such as China and South Korea.

Selection policies and the handling of established shooters who have experienced a dip in form are also likely to remain talking points. Reigning world champion Samrat Rana, a 10m air pistol specialist, and Varun Tomar, a World Championships bronze medallist, are among those whose recent absence from the bigger stage has raised questions.

Both have shown that they can compete at the highest level, and their cases have once again brought the selection process under the scanner.

For now, however, the immediate task is to make a strong start to the LA28 qualification campaign. With 36 quota places on offer, Doha presents Indian shooters with a valuable opportunity to put the Asian Games disappointment behind them, deliver on the big stage and give the country's Olympic campaign an early boost.

The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) has also sounded a note of caution amid the prevailing situation in the Gulf region, saying it will closely monitor developments and assess the situation as it unfolds.

"In light of recent developments in the region, the ISSF is closely monitoring the security situation in cooperation with the Qatar Shooting & Archery Association, the relevant national authorities and other appropriate partners," the ISSF said in a statement.

India will begin its campaign in the men's and women's 10m air rifle events on November 3, when the medals will be decided. Parth Mane, Himanshu Dhillon and Paarth Makhija will represent India in the men's event, while Shambhavi Kshirsagar, Sonam Maskar and Elavenil Valarivan will compete in the women's section.