The fine-tuned violin hits the perfect pitch

It marked the culmination of six years of hard work, a journey that began in 1996 when he took to shooting at the Army Marksman Unit (AMU). Rathore stood out among the crowd with his ability and led the medals tally in the nationals that year. It was the indication of things to come.

Other top honours came his way, including several world cup wins and the Commonwealth gold — indeed, he was declared best shooter at the meet — but Rathore had only one thing on his mind: an Olympic medal.

It was an obsession that made him the butt of good-natured jokes among army friends — and the nickname ‘Chilly’, after a children’s fable character who builds castles in the air.

What Rathore was building, in fact, was the platform for India’s first-ever individual Olympic silver. He had a head start because allied to his natural talent was a single-minded devotion and will to prove everyone wrong.

Which is why he chose, improbably, the double-trap. Considered the most difficult event in shooting (aiming at two moving targets within one second), not too many Indians had attempted it. And so, just before the Sydney Games, Rathore made up his mind: he’d enter the double trap.

Fine-tuning his ability, his dedication became legendary among his peers. Trap shooters Mansher Singh, Moraad Ali Khan and Manavjit Singh were at one tournament with him abroad; tired after their event, they were ready to leave for their hotel. But Rathore kept them back for several hours, trying to rectify some flaws only he had noticed in his shooting that day. More than 500 pellets later, he was satisfied.

Of course, he wasn’t alone in his effort. He received backing from three important quarters: the Sports Ministry, which granted over Rs. 90 lakh for training abroad, the Sports Authority of India with an uninterrupted supply of ammunition while in India and, above all, Australian Russell Mark.

A silver medallist at Sydney, Mark has been helping Rathore with training, his scientific method of coaching with the backing of latest technology moulding Rathore from top-notch to a medal-winner.

If his dedication is one quality, Rathore’s other positive trait is a willingness to listen to ‘‘whatever advice comes from any quarter’’. As he told this reporter from Athens: ‘‘Whenever I am with anyone who can share his experience with me, I love to listen and, more often than not, I always find something of value. I then try and incorporate those in my training and see if it works for me.’’

One of those who’s given him advice has been Col RS Dhull, the co-instructor at Mhow, where Rathore honed his craft. ‘‘His self-belief is what has taken him to this level’’, Dhull said today. ‘‘He would never give up until he is satisfied. This is just the beginning. We’ll see him shoot gold at Beijing.’’