Asian Shooting Championships review: Indian shooters hit close to the mark

After her dominant showing at the Asian Shooting Championships in New Delhi in February, Elavenil Valarivan might have lingered a little longer in the moment. The 26-year-old stamped her class and reaffirmed her status as one of the mainstays of Indian rifle shooting in the marquee 10m air rifle event. She topped qualification with a score of 633.7 and then stormed to victory in the final. The gold medal was her third at the Continental Championships and, on a personal note, carried added significance as her first international individual medal won in India.

Yet when she stepped out of the finals range at New Delhi’s Karni Singh Shooting Range, Elavenil was already looking ahead. “I’m really glad to have won my first international medal at home, but this is also a tournament that’s part of my learning experience. Overall, this year is going to be about preparation,” she says.

Preparation, she explains, for the major competitions she hopes to peak at later this year. “We have the Asian Games in September and then the World Championships, which is an Olympic qualifying event, in November. Those are really important for us,” she says.

Elavenil was not alone in taking that view.

Much of the Indian shooting contingent looked beyond the medal tally at the Asian Championships, instead treating the event as an opportunity to tick boxes, adapt to new International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) rules and build confidence in a crucial season.

One reason for this perspective is that India’s performance cannot be judged solely by medal count. On the face of it, the host delivered its best-ever showing at the Asian Championships, winning 95 medals: 51 gold, 23 silver and 21 bronze across senior, junior and youth categories. If the count is restricted to Olympic events, including the men’s and women’s 10m air rifle, 50m three positions, pistol disciplines and mixed team events, India’s tally stands at five gold, five silver and six bronze medals.

However, that result came with a caveat. The field at the Asian Championships was significantly depleted. China opted out of the competition, while South Korea did not send its top shooters. Iran, which fields a high-quality pistol team, also did not compete in New Delhi.

In the absence of leading contenders, some shooters qualified for the final with scores that would likely not have made the cut at other major competitions. In the men’s 10m air rifle event, for example, the last shooter to qualify did so with 624.6; at last year’s World Championships, the qualifying mark was 632.4. India’s Arjun Babuta, who went on to win silver, reached the final with 628.0. “I don’t even recall the last time I made that score. I think it’s partly because we didn’t have the top shooters taking part, it was harder to push ourselves,” he would later say.

Rule changes

Lower scores in the men’s 10m air rifle may have had another explanation. The ISSF introduced several rule changes this year, including reducing the stiffness of the jackets and trousers worn by rifle shooters. This meant athletes had less external support and had to rely more on posture for stability while firing. Although Indian shooters had competed in two selection trials with modified jackets, the Asian Championships marked the first international event under the new regulations.

The 10m rifle shooters were not the only ones adjusting. Pistol shooters had to contend with changes to the permitted shape of their gun grips. There were also format revisions. In the 10m rifle and pistol mixed team events, the top four teams now compete together in the final. Previously, the top two teams contested for the gold, while the third- and fourth-placed teams shot separately for bronze.

A new format also debuted in the 50m three positions final. Shooters now had to complete 20 shots in kneeling and prone, along with sighting shots, within 22 minutes. Earlier, there was designated changeover time between kneeling, prone and standing.

The transition was not always seamless. India’s Suruchi Singh and Samrat Rana later admitted they realised only upon stepping onto the finals range that they were not guaranteed a medal, despite topping qualification in the 10m air pistol mixed team event. The pair, heavy favourite, eventually settled for silver.

In the 50m rifle three positions event, Anjum Moudgil, who won bronze, later said she had not realised that the sighting shots she believed she was taking at the end of the prone position were actually being counted towards her score.

Self-imposed changes

While some adjustments were mandated by the international federation, others were self-imposed. Double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker won silver in the women’s 25m pistol event, her first international medal since switching guns late last year. Anish Bhanwala, silver medallist at last year’s World Championships in the 25m rapid fire event, had also made a change to his pistol grip but struggled at the Asian Championships.

Although he claimed bronze, Anish shot 574 in qualification, among the lowest scores of his career. While Manu appeared comfortable with her equipment change, Anish indicated he would likely revert to his previous grip. He had no regrets about testing it at the Asian Championships.

“It was important to try and use it here. It might not have worked out for me, but I won’t wonder what I might have shot had I never made the change. It’s better that I didn’t shoot as well as I would have wanted at the Asian Championships rather than later in the year,” he told Sportstar.

Bhanwala was not the only shooter looking to improve in the months ahead. Suruchi, who won three World Cup gold medals and another at the World Cup Final last year, finished outside the podium, while Rana, gold medallist at last year’s World Championships, ended on the lowest step.

Yet Rana felt he gained from the experience. He was sixth about a third of the way into the final before regrouping to secure a medal. It was, he says, proof that he could deliver under pressure. “It’s hard when you are playing at home, and you aren’t performing at the best level. It’s not easy to just focus on your technique. But I executed every shot with proper technique, and that gives me the confidence that I can trust my technique and execute well,” he said.

Most Indian shooters felt they benefitted from the competition, either by adapting quickly or by learning hard lessons. While the field may have been diminished, the maximum permitted three Indian shooters qualified for the final of every Olympic event. And although some scores were modest, there were notable performances as well. Niraj Kumar, who took silver in the men’s 50m in the three positions event, shot a career-high 593 in qualification.

In contrast to much of the field, former world champion Rudrankksh Patil shot a solid 632.1 in the men’s 10m air rifle, just 0.2 below what he managed with a stiffer jacket at last year’s Asian Championships. Esha Singh, bronze medallist at last year’s World Championships, produced a personal-best 589 in qualification in the women’s 25m pistol.

Some of India’s most striking performances came from shooters ineligible for senior medals or competing in junior categories. Subhash Sihag and Sainyam topped qualification in the men’s and women’s 10m air pistol events with scores of 585 and 584, respectively. Patil finished second in the men’s 50m in the three positions qualification with 591, while Vidarsa Kochalumkal led the women’s event with 590.

Among the juniors, Himanshu and Shambhavi Kshirsagar stood out in the 10m rifle. Himanshu’s 633.9 in qualification surpassed every senior competitor, while Shambhavi shot 253.7 in the junior women’s final, higher than Elavenil’s 252 in the senior gold-medal round.

Even without standing on the senior podium, such scores strengthen their case for selection in an increasingly competitive Indian team. “These performances matter,” says rifle high-performance coach Manoj Kumar. “It all adds to their rankings and average score, on the basis of which India’s team for the Asian Games will be picked,” he says.

While the Asian Championships were only the first stop in a long season, shooters like Elavenil felt it was important to start strongly. “The season is going to be very competitive. It’s good to get off to a good start. But now it’s about building on this result,” she says.

Results

India at the Asian Championships

Overall medal tally (Olympic events)

Gold: 5

Silver: 5

Bronze: 6

Total: 16 medals

Rifle events

10m Air Rifle – Men

Gold: Rudrankksh Patil

Silver: Arjun Babuta

50m Rifle 3 Positions – Men

Gold: Aishwary Tomar

Silver: Niraj Kumar

Bronze: Akhil Sheoran

10m Air Rifle – Women

Gold: Elavenil Valarivan

Bronze: Meghana Sajjanar

50m Rifle 3 Positions – Women

Silver: Aakriti Dahiya

Bronze: Anjum Moudgil

10m Air Rifle – Mixed Team

Gold: Arjun Babuta / Elavenil Valarivan

Pistol Events

10m Air Pistol – Men

Bronze: Samrat Rana

25m Rapid Fire Pistol – Men

Bronze: Anish Bhanwala

10m Air Pistol – Women

Gold: Esha Singh

25m Pistol – Women

Silver: Manu Bhaker

Bronze: Esha Singh

10m Air Pistol – Mixed Team

Silver: Suruchi Singh/ Samrat Rana

Published on Feb 25, 2026