Para shooter from New Zealand Kiranjit dreams of Paris berth in ongoing World Cup

Para shooter Kiranjeet Singh was going about his routine of transporting harvesting equipment from one farm to another in his truck in Auckland when tragedy struck.

A heavy component fell on his neck, leaving him paralysed.

After being bedridden for more than two years, he underwent multiple surgeries, which restored partial mobility in his arms but left him incapacitated below the waist.

Persuaded by friends to take up a sport to “kill boredom” and “avoid going into depression”, Kiranjeet settled on shooting after dabbling briefly in wheelchair table tennis.

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The 36-year-old 10m air rifle marksman (SH2 category) of Indian descent now has the sole aim of winning a medal at the ongoing Para Shooting World Cup at the Karni Singh Ranges here and securing a quota place for the 2024 Paris Paralympics.

“I migrated to New Zealand in 2010, a year after my marriage. I was 22 or 23 then. In 2016, I got seriously injured when a heavy component of the harvesting machine I was unloading from my truck fell off. That 100kg component severely damaged my C4-C5 vertebrae,” Kiranjeet told  PTI after his practice session at the Karni Singh Range here on Friday.

“I have undergone 9 or 10 surgeries on my arms, fingers, neck,” the marksman says as he shows the numerous cuts and incisions on his arms and fingers, a tell-tale sign of the several surgical interventions he has undergone in the last few years.

“Every 3-4 months, I undergo surgery to restore some more mobility in my arms and fingers,” says Kiranjeet.

While the mobility in his arms gave him the confidence to fly to India, he wasn’t too sure how he would “adjust” to a shooting environment outside Auckland.

“Initially, I was a bit scared and sceptical… how I would move around at the range here in a wheelchair, whether there would be adequate facilities. But everything is just fine. I came 20 days in advance to familiarise myself with the range,” he says.

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While Kiranjit’s wife is his caregiver back home, he has roped in Rajinder Singh from his hometown in Khanna in Punjab to help him during training and competition.

“My wife is usually my helper, but since we had a baby five months back, she cannot be by my side at the range,” says Kiranjit, who started shooting during peak Covid.

“Initially, I tried my hand at table tennis but moved to shooting sport soon after. I travelled 10km to the nearest shooting range in a customised car before I built a range at my residence,” he says.

With the World Cup in Delhi being the last Paris Paralympic qualifying tournament, Kiranjit is hopeful he has done enough practice to fulfil his dream of qualifying for Paris.

“I have been blessed with a baby after nearly 14 years. Who knows, I might win a Paris quota place right here where I was born.”