India gets third medal in Paris Olympics, Swapnil Kusale won bronze in shooting
India’s Swapnil Kusale, playing his first Olympics, won the bronze medal in the men’s 50m rifle three positions at the Paris Olympics. Swapnil, who was seventh in the qualification, secured third place by scoring 451.4. This is India’s third bronze in these games. Earlier, Manu Bhaker had won bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol and 10m air pistol mixed team category with Sarabjot Singh. For the first time in India’s Olympic history, shooters have won three medals in the same games. China’s Liu Yukun (463.6) won gold and Ukraine’s Serhiy Kulish (461.3) won silver.
India got third medal in Paris Olympics 2024
The last time an Indian shooter reached the final in the 50m rifle was in the London Olympics, when Joydeep Karmakar finished fourth in the 50m rifle prone. Like his idol cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kusale worked as a TC in the railways. His first shot in kneeling was 9.6, but he made a great comeback. After this, he reached second position by scoring 10.6 and 10.3, but the next two shots were 9.1 and 10.1, which brought him to fourth position. Then he reached third position by scoring 10.3 and remained there till the end. He was in sixth position after kneeling position, but came to fifth position after prone.
What did Swapnil Kusale say after the victory?
Kusale, who has been playing at the international level for the last 12 years, had to wait for 12 years for his Olympic debut. Kusale, who is inspired by former India skipper Dhoni, watched the film made on the World Cup winning cricket captain many times. He had said after the qualification, ‘I do not take guidance from any particular player in shooting, but Dhoni is my favorite in other sports. My game also requires calmness and he too was always calm on the field. He too was once a TC and so am I.’
