Swapnil makes final of 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men’s event

This will be the Shooting contingent’s fifth medal round of the Paris 2024 Olympics

Khel Today Bureau

New Delhi: Swapnil Kusale handled the trials and tribulations of a gruelling 50m Rifle 3 Positions (3P) Olympic qualification round with admirable composure, shooting a top-drawer 590 over 20-shots each in the Kneeling, Prone and Standing positions, to take seventh place in the elite 44-man field and give India her fifth shot at a Shooting medal in the Paris Olympics. 

Manu Bhaker has helped convert two of those shots into bronze, first in the women’s 10m air pistol and thereafter, while partnering Sarabjot Singh in the mixed team air pistol. Those are still India’s only two medals at the on-going Paris Games.

While Swapnil, a seasoned 3P shooter, made his first Olympic final in his debut Olympics, two-time Olympian Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar missed out narrowly, his score of 589 giving him 11th spot in the pecking order, as Czechia’s Jiri Privratsky took the eighth and final qualifying spot at 590. China’s Liu Yukun topped the field with a 594.

In the other Shooting event of the day, Rajeshwari Kumari and Shreyasi Singh shot identical scores of 113 in the Women’s Trap to garner 22nd and 23rd spots respectively.

Thursday day six of the competition is 3P day as the Swapnil’s men’s 3P final precedes the women’s 3P qualification round featuring Anjum Moudgil and Sift kaur Samra in action for India.

QUALIFICATION ROUND:

Swapnil qualified for the final round after finishing 7th with a total score of 590. The finals are scheduled on 1st August at 13:00 IST

Key Government Intervention (Paris cycle)

Assistance under Procurement of Ammunition

Domestic training with a Personal Coach

Financial Assistance (Paris cycle)

Under TOPS: Rs.17,58,557/-

Under Annual Calendar for Training and Competition (ACTC): Rs.1,42,69,647/-

Achievements

World Championship, Cairo (2022) – finished 4th winning Olympics 2024 quota place for the Country.

Asian Games 2022 – Gold in Team event. World Cup, Baku (2023) – Gold medal in the mixed team event and two silver medals in individual & team events

World Championship, Cairo (2022) – Bronze medal in team event.

World Cup, New Delhi (2021) – Gold medal in team event.

Background

Swapnil Kusale was born in 1995, in a family with an agricultural background. In 2009, his father enrolled him into Maharashtra government’s primary programme dedicated to Sports, Krida Prabhodini. After one year of hardcore physical training, he had to choose one sport and he chose shooting. In 2013, he became sponsored by Lakshya Sports.

In 2015, he won gold in 50m rifle prone 3 in the junior category in 2015 Asian Shooting Championships in Kuwait. He also won the 59th National Shooting Championship held in Tughlakabad ahead of Gagan Narang and Chain Singh in the 50m rifle prone event. He repeated the same performance in 61st National Championship in Thiruvananthapuram by winning a gold in 50m rifle 3 position.

Date of birth: AUGUST 06, 1995

Training base: BALEWADI STADIUM, PUNE

Birthplace: PUNE.