Asian Games 2018: Shardul Vihan trades willow for gun, to produce another shooter from Meerut

“When he mounted the gun, its length was almost as much as his height and the other kids laughed. But he did it. When he won the medal today, he showed me the gun like a bat and said, ‘Chachu, kar li batting poori‘,” said Manoj.

With the family based in Siwaya village in Meerut, the young Shardul would train under Ved Pal along with 20 other shooters, among whom only three were shotgun shooters. The youngster would win a silver medal in a North Zone meet in 2012 before some complaints about him being below 12 years in age and without a arms licence resulted in him missing the National Shooting Championship.

“One cannot have an arms licence below he is 12 years old but a young shooter can compete with a club or academy gun in competitions. The officials ruled that he cannot shoot in competitions at that time. He was disappointed but would train at the academy with an old gun,” remembers Ved Pal Singh.

With the Palhera outdoor range being given on lease to a private academy in 2015 and the area for outdoor trap range the subject of a court case at the Allahabad HC since 2016, the Vihan family decided to put Shardul under three-time Asian Championship medallist Anwer Sultan in Delhi. In 2016, the youngster won his first gold medal in the junior category at the nationals at Pune. Last year, he made history when he won a total of four gold medals at the 61st National Shooting Championship in New Delhi where he defeated world number one Ankur Mittal 78-76 in the final.

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“Starting at such a young age meant Shardul’s muscle memory was good and he adjusted to the requirements of shot gun shooting. Training under Marcello Dradi in Italy prior to the Asian Games also helped him understand the challenges posed by different positions and it showed in his shooting today,” shared 54-year-old Sultan.

Shardul’s training would cost more than Rs 2 lakh per month and it helped that the Vihan family owns 28 cares of farmland apart from dealing in real estate. When the teenager asked for a new gun, the family bought him one costing Rs 6.5 lakh in 2016. “Even though we manage the farm and deal in real estate, shot gun shooting is an expensive sport. It also means that we would borrow some money from the village landlords. When he got his own gun, he would often sleep with the empty gun under his pillow. I am sure now it will be replaced by his medal,” shared father Deepak.

As for mother Manju, the medal will see Shardul eager to get another gun for trying out trap events. “Sometimes I would be concerned about him handling such big guns. Initially, he would suffer injuries on his cheek and shoulders. He loves his gun and never lets anybody touch the pellets and keeps them in a safe. When he won the gold medal at the nationals last year, he asked us to get him plenty of game CDs for his Playstation and I am sure this time too he will get some from Indonesia. He has already shown his interest for trap events and will not leave us in peace till we get him the gun,” laughs off 40-year-old Manju.