“Ignored repeatedly” for coach‘s job, Olympic-medallist shooter Vijay Kumar expresses displeasure

“Pained” by the national shooting federation repeatedly “ignoring” him for the post of national coach, Olympic silver-medallist Vijay Kumar has written to its president requesting him to take note of his “unparalleled achievements” and provide him the opportunity to groom the next generation of shooters.

Vijay, the 2012 London Olympics silver medallist and one of the finest rapid-fire pistol exponents, added that he felt demotivated seeing some coaches with absolutely “no international experience or performance” being selected for top coaching jobs while his credentials were being ignored.

The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) president, Kalikesh Singh Deo, however, said that though he was not aware of a letter from Vijay, the veteran shooter was “a very deserving candidate and we are re-evaluating the coaching hiring after the Asian Championships (in Kazakhstan from August 16 to 30)..

“We will be taking some new ones (coaches) and weeding out some of the old ones who may not be ranked,” Kalikesh told PTI.

The NRAI governing body had in February appointed nearly three dozen coaches and high-performance experts, including renowned names like Jaspal Rana and Deepali Deshpande, but Vijay’s name didn’t figure in the list. Vijay said he had reached out to several selection committee members in the NRAI but did not receive a satisfactory answer.

“I had reached out to you after being ignored by the selection committee for the position of pistol coach of the Indian shooting team in February 2025, and you had assured me of a re-look at the decision,” said Vijay in his letter to Kalikesh, a copy of which is with PTI.

“I had reached out to the NRAI secretary-general and members of the selection committee to understand the reasons for my non-selection to the coaching panel, but did not receive any satisfactory answer,” added Vijay, who is currently a Deputy Superintendent of Police in Himachal Pradesh.

The Khel Ratna awardee and multiple-time Commonwealth Games medallist added that it is his moral obligation to bring up the next generation of shooters, and he had it in him to mentally prepare them for big competitions.

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“My achievements for India are unparalleled, and I consider it my duty to help the next generation of Indian shooters dominate the international arena. Winning medals at the Olympics and other top-flight competitions requires mental preparation along with shooting talent, and you would agree that I possess those skill sets in abundance,” said Vijay.

He alleged that some of the selected coaches had a history of doping or indiscipline and still they had been included in the setup.

“There are some extremely fine coaches who have been selected for these posts. However, the selection committee has also, in its wisdom, selected candidates who have no comparable achievements and also those with a history of doping, or have been sanctioned on disciplinary grounds,” he said. “I urge you to kindly intervene in this matter and ensure I am treated with the respect deserving of an Olympic medallist,” he added.

Kalikesh said that the process of hiring coaches is still evolving as India builds on the Paris Olympics success and indicated that Vijayb had a good chance of getting into the national setup.

“I know Vijay Kumar had applied as a coach (ahead of the February selection), and there was an internal committee which was set up, which had evaluated prospective coaches. The coaches were hired on their recommendation only. And Vijay Kumar had then further contacted me.

“The process is ever evolving and I have told Vijay that we will certainly consider him. I think he will be an important asset for us. Given the fact that he has faced a lot of similar situations in terms of competitiveness and got medals for the country.

“Yes, it’s one of our agendas to transcend our shooters into coaches, because we have hired a lot of our old shooters as coaches in any case. So, maybe, sooner or later… there will be a re-look in August. We had communicated that to him just after the last selection, also. And we had requested him to just be patient.