Pistol shooter Shahzar Rizvi bags gold, coach says he can achieve Olympic glory

Pistol shooter Shahzar Rizvi after winning gold at the ISSF World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico on Saturday

Shahzar Rizvi may not be a household name in Indian shooting just yet, but according to his personal coach Ronak Pandit, the Meerut-based shooter has it in him to win an Olympic medal at Tokyo 2020.

On Saturday, Rizvi shot a world record 242.3 in the 10m air pistol event final to win gold at the ongoing ISSF World Cup in Guadalajara, Mexico, in his maiden World Cup outing. "The secret to Shahzar's shooting is in his nature. He is very relaxed and that helps him shoot with a free mind. He is not bogged down by the nature of the tournament, whether it's a national event or a World Cup or the level of competition around him. Here, in his very first World Cup, he has beaten reigning Olympic champion Christian Reiz [who won silver with 239.7] of Germany to clinch top honours," Pandit, who is the husband and personal coach of leading women's pistol shooter Heena Sidhu, told mid-day over the phone from Pune yesterday.

ISSF World Cup bronze-winning pistol shooter Mehuli Ghosh

At the national level, Rizvi has beaten top names like London Olympics silver medallist Vijay Kumar and two-time World Cup gold medallist Jitu Rai among others. Rai won bronze with a score of 219.0 in Mexico.

Rizvi is being trained by Pandit since the last year. "Shahzar is a very emotional shooter and approached me last year when he was not going through a very promising phase. I was a bit busy travelling with Heena for her tournaments, so a lot of our communication has been through emails and WhatsApp. For starters, I have fine-tuned his technique a bit and channelised his rhythm. He still needs to work on the fitness aspect. But he is strong-willed and has a lot of promise and that's why I believe he has the potential to win an Olympic medal in Tokyo. Besides, he's just 23," added Pandit, who was appointed in January as Observer of rifle and pistol events by the game's national governing body, NRAI (National Rifles Association of India).

Bronze-winner Jitu Rai

Alongwith Shahzar and Rai, teenager Mehuli Ghosh (17 years) also won a bronze medal on Saturday, shooting a world junior record of 228.4, on her World Cup debut. Citing Rizvi and Ghosh's example, Pandit drove home a significant point to ensure India achieves more Olympic glory in shooting in the long term.

"Shahzar and Mehuli have personal coaches. Mehuli is trained by ace marksman Joydeep Karmakar. The need of the hour in Indian shooting is personal coaches. We will always have one or two new names coming up and winning international medals, but to develop this talent and continue winning medals consistently, these winners must have personal coaches who understand every athlete's potential strengths, shortcomings, mood swings etc. Till now, Indian shooting has been sending out large contingents with one common coach.

Ronak Pandit

Internationally, all top shooters have their own personal coaches. "In my capacity as Observer, I am trying to drive home this point with NRAI, and I'm sure it will result in more shooting medals at Tokyo 2020," Pandit signed off.

No conflict of interest in my appointment, insists NRAI Observer Ronak Pandit

There have been a lot of whispers in the national shooting fraternity about NRAI's (National Rifles Association of India) appointment of Ronak Pandit as Observer of the rifle and pistol events considering he is also the personal coach of pistol shooter Heena Sidhu and has his own training academy too.

However, Pandit, an established national shooter himself, clarified that he has no role whatsoever in selection of shooters. "My role is to simply oversee the work done by coaches and subsequent implementation by shooters, and to convey my observations to the NRAI. I have no say in selection matters or on individual shooters, so there is no question of conflict of interest," Pandit told mid-day. "As Heena is in the government's TOP (Target Olympic Podium) scheme, I regularly prepare and submit her detailed working plans to the authorities.

As Observer, now I'll be overseeing plans of other coaches. My role is to be the link between shooters and coaches. I have no power beyond that and I don't want any more power either."

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