# Shooting sports in India

Shooting is an important Olympic sport in India. Of India's 41 Olympic medals, seven have come from shooting, including a gold by Abhinav Bindra in the 2008 Olympics. Indian shooters who have excelled at international events include Abhinav Bindra, Jaspal Rana, Jitu Rai, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Vijay Kumar, Gagan Narang, Apurvi Chandela, Ronjan Sodhi, Anjali Bhagwat, Heena Sidhu, Shreyasi Singh, Manu Bhaker, Avani Lekhara, Mona Agarwal, Anisa Sayyed, Rahi Sarnobat, Anantjeet Singh Naruka, and Saurabh Chaudhary. Indian shooter Shimon Sharif is a well known shooting expert.

## History

Shooting sports have a varied history in India. Initially they were played by royal people of British India for amusement and recreation. The highest governing body of shooting sports in India is National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), which was established on 17 April 1951. From then on India achieved some success in the Olympic games by winning a Gold. But largely this sport is not affordable to command Indians because of a lack of shooting ranges and facilities in the country.

### 2012 Olympics

The Indian shooting contingent for the 2012 London was one of the largest to date. There were a total of 11 shooters including 4 female shooters. India's first medal in the 2012 Olympics was when Gagan Narang won the bronze in the 10m Air Rifle event. This was the same event in which Abhinav Bindra won India's first individual gold medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics Beijing. The second medal came from the unheralded army man Vijay Kumar when he won the silver in the 25m rapid fire pistol event after finishing 4th in the qualification rounds. He had to fend off some tough competition from the third placed Chinese Ding Feng.
A notable performance was made by Joydeep Karmakar who finished 4th in the 50m rifle prone event. A strong medal prospect Ronjan Sodhi who is an Asian Games gold medallist, however crashed out in the qualification rounds of the Double trap event.

## Olympic Games

| Games | Event | Name | Medal |
| 2004 Athens | Men's Double Trap | Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore | Silver |
| 2008 Beijing | Men's 10m Air Rifle | Abhinav Bindra | Gold |
| 2012 London | Men's 10m Air Rifle | Gagan Narang | Bronze |
| 2012 London | Men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol | Vijay Kumar | Silver |
| 2024 France | Women's 10m Air Pistol | Manu Bhaker | Bronze |
| 2024 France | Mixed 10m Air Pistol Team | Manu Bhaker Sarabjot Singh | Bronze |
| 2024 France | Men's 50m Rifle Three Positions | Swapnil Kusale | Bronze |

## Medal table

| Tournament | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| Olympic Games | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 |
| World Championships | 13 | 12 | 15 | 40 |
| World Cup Final | 9 | 5 | 3 | 17 |
| World Cup | 54 | 43 | 43 | 140 |
| Asian Games | 16 | 30 | 34 | 80 |
| Commonwealth Games | 63 | 44 | 28 | 135 |
| Total | 156 | 136 | 127 | 419 |
* Updated till 5th August, 2024

## Notable non-medals performances at Olympics

| Year | Event | Player | Result |
| 2000 |
| 2000 | Women's 10 metre air rifle | Anjali Bhagwat | 8th |
| 2004 |
| 2004 | Men's 10 metre air rifle | Abhinav Bindra | 7th |
| 2004 | Women's 10 metre air rifle | Suma Shirur | 8th |
| 2012 |
| 2012 | Men's 50 metre rifle prone | Joydeep Karmakar | 4th |
| 2016 |
| 2016 | Men's 10 metre air rifle | Abhinav Bindra | 4th |
| 2016 | Men's 10 metre air pistol | Jitu Rai | 8th |
| 2020 |
| 2020 | Men's 10 metre air pistol | Saurabh Chaudhary | 7th |
| 2024 |
| 2024 | Men's 10 metre air rifle | Arjun Babuta | 4th |
| 2024 | Women's 25 metre pistol | Manu Bhaker | 4th |
| 2024 | Mixed skeet team | Anantjeet Singh Naruka Maheshwari Chauhan | 4th |
| 2024 | Women's 10 metre air rifle | Ramita Jindal | 7th |

## Administration

The sport is administered in India by The National Rifle Association of India. The association organises the following tournaments every year:
* National Shooting Championship Competitions (NSCC)
* All India G.V. Mavlankar Shooting Championship (AIGVMSC)
* Sardar Sajjan Singh Sethi Memorial Masters Shooting Championship
* Kumar Surendra Singh Memorial Shooting Championship
* All India Kumar Surendra Singh Memorial Inter School Shooting Championship