Shooters begin medal hunt as top range draws spectators

It clearly helps to know that Rahi and her Malaysian rival Alia started the finals tied at 550, and that every noisy subsequent shot (changing scores relayed on the screen, analysed on a target-zoomer) was actually a catch-up game with exciting elements like a lead, a good shot, a bad one, a small 9 or a big 10 were all bit-steps climaxing into the eventual medal.

Two golds on Day 1 from the shooting ranges is good news for the sport — Ankush Bharadwaj claimed another gold in a bizarre two-man competition in 50 m pistol. But it’s high time India’s golden-fingered sport starts engaging the live audience with its twists and turns, though it’ll never quite completely seduce the spectator like tennis or cricket would. While Mumbai girl Ayonika, who started her 10 m air rifle final on fourth place, did her 10-shot final, apprehension was palpable beyond the range, in the stands — as she tried to overtake the Malaysian. Spontaneous and prompt applause as she shot a 10.7, and collective clucking when she ended timidly with a 9.8 — ending her bronze hopes — meant the sport was striking a chord.

Rahi Sarnobat’s aggressive dueling with her rival — the final rounds read 48.9 – 48.2 ; 50.7 – 47.9 ; 49.7 – 47.5 ; 48.8 – 49.3 — meanwhile saw tentative smiles broaden into wide grins, the proceedings needing no commentary, to trigger any celebration. “The reason why the home crowd felt like an advantage was because it was the only spectator-friendly range in India. I used to struggle to explain my sport to friends earlier, all that they saw was some shooters with guns pulling triggers standing in one file on far-off targets. Now they are with me on every shot,” said Sarnobat.

The nation might be weighing everything in cut-throat terms of medal or no-medal. But at a youth meet, such things like approval and cheering from friends and buddies matter. The range at Balewadi has scored a big 10 in that small matter of translation.