Indian shooters would prioritize recuperation and extended rest periods in order to win major medals.

With a fierce year of domestic and international competitions ahead, a formidable Indian shooting team, including reigning 10m air pistol World Champion Samrat Rana, current 25m rapid fire pistol silver medallist Anish Bhanwala, and Paris Olympic double medallist Manu Bhaker, will begin the Asian Shooting Championships at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range on Wednesday.

The first international competition of the year has progressed slowly for the Indians, who can find comfort in the absence of Chinese shooters and a reduced Korean team—two nations that are not only formidable Asian rivals but also have true world-class shooting teams.

Indian shooters have the opportunity to win numerous medals at the continental level without having to push themselves to the limit. Although there is competition from shooters from Kazakhstan and Japan, the Indian team is still among the best in the world, and this should be reflected in the number of medals won at the junior, youth, and senior levels of this sport.

With Olympic quotas for the 2028 Los Angeles Games up for grabs, Indian shooters will compete in the Asian Championships, the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, and the World Championships in Doha this year. This is in addition to the demanding domestic challenges and tribulations that Indians endure.

“I have kept it a little easy in the initial months,” says Bhanwala outside the 25m pistol range at the Karni Singh Shooting range. “The plan is the same as last year. Last time also, there were two main competitions at the end. This time also, two are at the end. One in September and one in November. It’s a little easy in the beginning,” adds the Haryana shooter.

The Indian squad has been divided into two sections in order to alleviate the ongoing stress of training camps, immediate competitions, and home trials. This year, each team will compete in just two World Cups, and the schedule now includes enough rest periods. Additionally, it has given coaches the opportunity to train shooters for 2025 and 2026, when Olympic quotas and continental competitions are up for grabs.

These adjustments were made to give shooters ample time to recuperate, according to national coach Deepali Deshpande.

“Because of the Asian championships and last year’s general calendar, the Nationals and Trials and this competition there wasn’t enough of a gap. Actually after Nationals, they take a long break. But that couldn’t happen this time,” said Deshpande.

“So we have made some significant changes in our overall training plan that, you know, no shooter will shoot more than two World Cups, so that when they go for Asian Games and World Championship, there will be a total of four international competitions,” added the rifle coach.

Arjun Babuta, an Indian mainstay and a consistent top shooter in the 10m air rifle discipline, admits that while his technical skill is “right up there,” he needs to improve his recovery, especially given that he has emerged as the top name on the Indian 10m air rifle sheet in recent years.

“I’m constantly in touch with our team to know what my requirements are in terms of nutrition or what workouts I need to do. Working on my sleep, especially when travelling, is something that has helped,” says the Paris Olympian.