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Sangram Dahiya excels in double trap
On September 13, 2009, a young Indian Shooter Sangram Dahiya (19) was declared the best shooter on the basis of his performance in a series of Junior World Cup championships. He was presented the inaugural Junior Shotgun World Cup Trophy for the year 2009 in double trap shooting, after conclusion of the junior world cup series in Porpetto, Italy.
Dahiya was awarded the trophy for scoring the maximum number of points in a series of World Cup Competitions of Double Trap Junior Championships held in various countries during 2009.
The first Junior International Shooting Competition of Double Trap was held in Shul (Germany) from April 27, 2009, to May 3, 2009. In this competition, he scored 142 out of 150 and won the Silver Medal in team event. The second Junior Shotgun World Cup competition was held at Ormattila (Finland) from May 25, 2009 to May 31, 2009, where he won a Double Gold Medal individually as well as in the team also. The 3rd World Cup Shotgun Junior Championship was held on September 13, 2009 at Porpetto (Italy) where he had a tie Shoot with an Australian Shooter for Silver Medal but he had to be satisfied with the Bronze Medal.
In addition to Sports, Dahiya is completing his B.Com (Hons) from Hansraj College, Delhi University.
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Annual return for holding/sale of weapons
The Government has devised a proforma for annual return for holding/sale of weapons. This return must be submitted by all renowned shooters registered with NRAI by January 31 every year, thus indicating the status of holding/sale of weapons up to the previous calendar year.
In the absence of the above return, the Government may not be able to recommend the applications for arms and ammunition or custom duty exemption.
>> Download Notification
>> Return Form
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NRAI members exempt from depositing arms
The Election Commission of India has exempted members of the National Rifle Association of India from depositing their weapons during Lok Sabha Elections vide its letter no. 437/GE-99/PLN-III/MCC/22307 dated July 28, 1999.
The Election Commission of India has further clarified vide its letter no. 464/L & O/2/2006/PLN-1/923 dated April 7, 2006 that this exemption is valid for all elections of Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies in future.
>> Download Notification
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Gagan Narang created history
Gagan Narang created history by winning a Gold Medal in the Air Rifle (Men) event at the ISSF World Cup Finals in Bangkok on November 5, 2008.
He shot 600/600 in the Qualification Round and equaled the World Record which was held by MAJCHACHEEP Tavarit of Thailand since year 2000. This was first equaled by SOKOLOV Denis of Russia early 2008.
Narang established a New World Record in the Finals by scoring 703.5 (600+103.5). In the process, he erased the record held by FARNIK Thomas of AUT, of 703.1 (599+104.1) in the year 2006, during the World Cup Finals held at Garnada, Spain.
The Olympic Record in this event is 702.7 held by ZHU Qinan of China. This record was established during the Athens Olympics in 2004.
Participation in the ISSF World Cup Finals is on the basis of performance of shooters during the various World Cups held during the year. Gagan Narag and Abhinav Bindra were selected to participate this year in the Air Rifle event. Abhinav Bindra did not participate due to personal reasons.
We may mention here that Ms Suma Shirur is also a World Record holder in the Air Rifle (Women) event which she equaled during the Asian Shooting Championship in 2004 by scoring 400/400. Ronjon Sodhi also equaled the World Record this year in the Double Trap event during the World Cup at Belgrade with a score of 194(147+47).
After establishing a New World Record during the ISSF World Cup Finals, Narang said: “Every win is special because every match is a learning experience. When we win, it’s worth the effort put in, and when we lose, it’s always a learning experience. I think shooting as as a sport teaches us to take success and failure with equal grace. This win has motivated me to perform even better.”
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NRAI secretary general nominated Dy Chef De Mission
Secretary General Shri Baljit Singh Sethi has been nominated as Dy Chef – De – Mission for Beijing Olympic Games 2008.
This is a great honour for Shri Sethi and shooting sport in particular. He was also the Che – de – Mission for SAF Games, 2004, held at Islamabad, Pakistan.
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Record turnout at 17th GV Mavlankar Championships
A record number of shooters – 1720 - participated in the recently-concluded 17th All India GV Mavlankar Shooting Championships for rifle/pistol and shotgun events. The event was held at Agra between October 24 and November 2, 2007. Arrangements made by Shyam Singh Yadav were commendable.
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Shooters picked for Asian Clay Shooting event in Manila
In the Asian Clay Shooting Championships to be conducted in Manila between October 25 and October 30, 2007, twelve shooters have been selected for men and women events in trap, double trap and skeet.
India had won four Gold medals, one silver and one bronze medals at the Asian Clay Shooting Championships held in Singapore in 2006.
Listed below are the shooters selected for the upcoming championship in Manila.
TRAP
MANAVJIT SINGH
ZORAWAR SINGH SANDHU
ANWER SULTAN
DOUBLE TRAP
RONJON SODHI
R V S RATHORE
VIKRAM CHOPRA
SKEET
A D PEOPLE
MAIRAJ AHMAD KHAN
AMIT SANGHI
TRAP WOMEN
SHAGUN CHOWDHARY
SKEET WOMEN
ARTI SINGH RAO
SANIYA SHEIKH
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Manavjit gets Rajiv Khel Ratna; Arjuna for Vijay Kumar
Manavjit Singh Sandhu, a world champion in trap shooting, bagged the Rajiv Khel Ratna Award for 2006. He is the fourth shooter to be honoured such. This award is in view of his excellent performance during the year at World Championships, World Cups and Asian Games.
Manavjit was also an Arjuna award recipient during the same year.
Alongside, Vijay Kumar became the 30th shooter to get the Arjuna Award for his excellent achievements. His performance at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne and Asian Games in Doha - where he won two gold and one bronze medals respectively - were memorable and worthy of notice.
We are proud of our shooters!
>> Manavjit Singh Sandhu ranks on top in Trap Shooting
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ISSF ‘B’ Judges Course from February 1-12, 2008
The ISSF has given its approval for conducting the ISSF ‘B’ Judges Course in Rifle, Pistol and Shot Gun disciplines from February 1-8, 2007, and Electronic Scoring Training (EST) from February 9-12, 2008 at New Delhi.
A. J. Jalaluddin and Col. Jaswant Singh (Retd.) would be instructors in General Aspects for the rifle, pistol and shotgun events. Mr. Ivy Derek from UK would be conducting the EST Course.
Students attending the Rifle and Pistol ISSF Judges Course would be notified immediately after completion of the course on whether they have achieved the necessary levels to gain a recommendation for the EST Course. Those found suitable could attend the EST Course as well.
The registration fee for ISSF Judges Course in Rifle, Pistol and Shot Gun parts is Rs. 6000/-. In addition, the registration fee for EST Course is Rs. 3000/- plus equivalent of 100 Swiss Franc in Indian Rupees. Those who have participated in the course earlier could still attend it to improve their performance; they would have to pay only 50% of the registration fee.
Those desirous of attending the above course should apply together with a bank draft in favor of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) for the required amount as explained above giving their Bio-Data incorporating experience so as to reach us latest by November 10, 2007. Those who are selected to attend the above course will be notified by November 15, 2007.
Those who already possess the ISSF Judges License in Rifle and Pistol events and are now desirous of attending the EST Course could apply for the same, the course fee in their case would be Rs. 3000/- and equivalent of 100 Swiss Franc in Indian Rupees.
The students would be required to make their own arrangements for boarding and lodging in the Capital.
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Samaresh Jung shines at Munich
A large contingent of 23 shooters (10 Rifle plus 13 Pistol) participated in the ISSF World Cup for rifle and pistol events held at Munich from May 26 to June 4, 2007. Prior to this competition, the shooters had an extensive training at Hannover (Germany). Of the entire team, 816 shooters from 81 countries participated. Samaresh Jung shot an excellent score of 584/600 in Air Pistol and there were three more shooters with the same score, the leading shooter had a score of 585/600. He was tied for the 4th position which he won by 0.3 points only, a very narrow win. He won the Olympic quota as the first three medalists had the quota already.
This is the first time we have earned an Olympic Quota in Pistol Shooting. Earlier Abha Dhillan and Jaspal Rana had participated in World Olympics on Wild Card basis. Tejaswini had a score of 580/600 in 50m Rifle 3 Position and missed the quota by one point.
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RonjanSodhi shines at Lonato
Mansher Singh won the Olympic Quota in Trap event with a leading score of 122+18=140/150. The event was the ISSF World Cup held at Lonato, Italy. He was tied for the fourth position which he lost as the first four had already won the Quota.
After a long period of low scores and average performance, Mansher appeared to be reviving his old form in this tournament. Beijing will be his fourth Olympic; he has already participated in the 1984, 1996 & 2004 Olympics.
Ronjan Sodhi gave an excellent performance in the Double Trap event with a score of 141/150 which was one point short of the leading shooter. In the final round, he scored 45/50, which is a good score, but other shooters shot better than him. Thus he was placed 4th and missed the Bronze medal by one point only.
Lt. Col. RVS Rathore scored 134/150 and was 23rd in the overall rankings. Both Moraad Ali Khan and Mohd. Ashab scored 132/150. Our skeet shooter and skeet and trap lady shooters gave poor performance.
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ZakirKhan wins 5 gold at Meeting of Shooting Hopes
A team of 10 men and 8 women (Jr.) shooters participated in the 17th Meeting of Shooting Hopes for Rifle and Pistol events. The match was held in Plezen, Czech Republic, between June 7 and June 10, 2007. It was a very well- contested International Competition. Still, our shooters did well.
The performance of Zakir Khan is praise worthy as he won 5 Gold medals in 10m Air Pistol, 50m Pistol and 25m Pistol events. Overall, India won 2 Gold, 2 Silver, one Bronze and in Team 3 Gold medals.
There has been a slight improvement over the 16th Meeting of Shooting Hopes held from 15th – 18th June, 2006 where our shooters had won individual 2 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze and in Team 2 Gold, 2 Silver and 2 Bronze medals.
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Government eases import policy for shooters
The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has finally accepted the recommendations of the NRAI and opened the import policy to the participants of NSCC. Any shooter participating in NSCC will now be allowed to import arms and ammunition, duty free, subject to achieving the minimum qualifying scores as laid down under rule 17.6 of the NRAI Match Book.
The liberalization of norms came about after sustained persuasion at various levels in the Sports as well as Home Ministry. The NRAI welcomes this gesture of the government and thanks the Hon’ble Minister of Sports.
We hope this step will go a long way in promoting the shooting sport in this country.
See Notification >>
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Samaresh Jung wins Quota Place for Beijing Olympics
Samaresh Jung earned a Quota Place for Beijing Olympics in Air Pistol events at the ISSF World Cup held in Munich from May 28 to June 4, 2007. He became the eighth shooter to get a Quota Place and the first to earn this position in Pistol events. Earlier, Abha Dhillan (1992) and Jaspal Rana (1996), both pistol shooters, had participated in the Olympic Games on “Wild Card Entry”.
Samaresh Jung shot 584 in the Qualifying Round and 98.1 totalling 682.1 and stood fourth in the Finals. He was tied for the fourth position with the Poland shooter who had the same score. In the tie shoot, Jung shot 9.8 and won the “Quota”; the shooter from Poland shot 9.5. The three shooters from Russia, Belarus and Slovakia were already “Quota” holders; hence, as per rule, the “Quota” came to India.
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Zorawar Singh wins bronze at ISSF World Cup, Chongwon
Zorawar Singh displayed an excellent performance at the ISSF World Cup in Chongwon, Korea, winning a bronze medal. He shot 25 25 24 22 and 25 totaling 121 in the qualifying round. In the Finals, he shot 20 and missed the quota place by one point.
It was an exciting final with three shooters including Zorawar Singh scoring 121/125, two shooters 118 and one shooter 117. In the Finals, Zorawar was tied for 2nd place with a Spanish shooter, who shot 117 in the qualifying round. In the tie shoot, he missed the second bird and was placed 3rd in the medals tally.
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Sanjeev Rajput creates 2 new national records
Sanjeev Rajput created new national records in the 50M Rifle 3 Position and 50M Rifle Prone during the ISSF World Cup and the Australia Cup at Sydney. During the Australia Cup, he created a new national record in the 50M Rifle Prone with a score of 597/600. The series total was 98 99 100 100 100 100.
In the Finals also, he established a new record with a score of 699.10 thereby improving upon the previous record of 698 set by Satguru Das in 2002. He won a bronze medal in this event.
Tejaswini Sawant also showed an excellent performance during the Australia Cup, winning two gold medals in the 50M Rifle Prone and 10M Rifle. She shot 588/600 and 498.7 (397+101.7). Abhinav Bindra, who restarted shooting after a gap of 9 months, won a Gold medal in the 10M Rifle event. He scored 594+103.7. Vivek Singh won a silver medal in the 50M Pistol event with a score of 658 (560+98).
In the 25M Standard Pistol, Vijay Kumar won a silver medal and shot 562/600. This was a mixed event and was also open to women shooters. Anisa Sayyed and Anuraj Singh also participated in this event and shot 553 and 550 respectively.
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Amol Chauhan: India loses upcoming shooter
We regret to inform our members that Amol Chauhan, 27, died in an air crash at Cameroon, Kenya. He was an upcoming pistol shooter. He participated last in the recently concluded 33rd National Games in Guwahati, winning 2 silver medals in team events in the Standard Pistol and Centre Fire Pistol.
Chauhan was one of the 15 Indian passengers on board a Kenya Airways flight to Nairobi.
May God rest the departed soul in peace.
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Sodhi wins double trap bronze
Ronjon Sodhi won a bronze medal in double trap at the ISSF World Cup held in Santo Domingo between March 18 and 29, 2007.
He shot 140/150 in the qualifying round, which was his best score in any international competition; he was at number 4. In the final round, he shot 47/50 to win the bronze medal. Other members of his team were Vikram Bhatnagar (134) and Moraad Ali Khan (125). In the team event, India won a Bronze Medal.
Birendeep Sodhi shot 116/125 in the trap event.
India had sent an 11-member team comprising nine shooters and two officials to this event.
NRAI will be sending another team of shotgun shooters to Changwon, Korea.
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Rajput wins quota for Beijing Olympics
The USA Shooting Association organized its biggest shooting event ever - the ISSF World Cup - at the Pool International Shooting Complex in Fort Benning (Atlanta) between March 30 and April 8, 2007. There were 64 countries and 515 marksmen.
India fielded a large contingent of 29 shooters who participated in all the Rifle and Pistol events. Sanjeev Rajput scored 1170/1200 in Free Rifle 3 position and ranked 11th. However, he was fortunate to win the quota for Beijing Olympics 2008 as shooters ranked up to 10th position had already got the Olympic Quota in this event.
The scores achieved by the remaining shooters were satisfactory, though a few performances are worth a mention:
PT Raghunath scored an excellent 590/600 in Air Rifle Men event and was ranked 9th. He qualified for the Beijing Olympic Quota but could not be granted the same as India had already secured two quotas in the same event.
Harveen S Rao scored a commendable 382/400 in Air Pistol Women and was ranked 6th in the final round. However, her score of 96.3 was far below her normal level of performance of over 100 points. Even if she had scored 100 in the final round, she would have won the Olympic Quota.
Amanpreet Singh had a similar bad luck. He scored 578/600 in the Air Pistol Men event. Had he scored one point more, he would have qualified for the finals and could have won the Olympic Quota.
China topped the medals tally bagging 11, followed by Germany with 5, Russia and United States with 3 each, Czech Republic with 2 and one each with Poland, Switzerland, Belarus, Mongolia, Serbia and Ukraine.
The remaining 53 countries did not earn any medal.
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India shone at Doha games
The shooting ranges at Doha, in Qatar, are among the best in the world. Shooters did them proud at the 15th Asian Games which concluded recently. Two world records were equaled, which included India’s Jaspal Rana’s feat in the Centre Fire Pistol, and five new ones were created.
India fielded a team of 33 shooters – 25 men and 8 women – and eight officials. The country was honoured that the Asian Shooting Confederation chose secretary general of the NRAI, Baljit Singh Sethi, as the Jury of Appeal, and A.J.Jalaluddin and Col. Jaswant Singh as Pistol and Rifle jury respectively. The shotgun referee was India’s M.Padmanabhan.
The Indian shooters kept the country’s flag flying high as they secured three gold, five silver and six bronze medals. The total tally of 14 medals was one-third of the total medals won by India in the remaining disciplines at the Asian Games, and was far superior to the feat put up at the previous Asian Games where India could boast of only two silver medals.
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Rana returns with a bang
Jaspal Rana, who was lying low for over four years, came back in style at the 15th Asian Games which concluded in Doha recently. The ace shooter, who was out of action since the conclusion of the Commonwealth Games in 2002, bagged three gold medals and one silver. He also equaled the world record in Centre Fire Pistol with a score of 590/600, which was a fantastic performance considering his long rest period prior to these games.
Rana started shooting at 16. In 1994, when he was only 18 years old, he established a new World Record in Standard Pistol (junior event) at the 46th World Shooting Championship held at Barcelona in Spain with a score of 569/600.
Throughout his career, he was rated as one of the top pistol shooters in the country and regularly collected medals in various Asian Shooting Championships and Commonwealth Games. In 1994, he was bestowed with the Arjuna award and subsequently the Padma Shree in 2002.
Now, Rana is practicing for the forthcoming Beijing Olympics in 2008.
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Manavjit Singh Sandhu ranks on top in Trap Shooting
Manavjit Singh Sandhu has come on tops in ISSF Trap Shooting competition held in July this year. He has been consistently giving top-notch performances in this event, having even bagged quota place for the 2008 Beijing Olympics by winning a silver medal in the World Cup held in Americana (Brazil) in May this year. His previous best performance was in 2003 World Cup in Delhi where he won a Bronze Medal. He has always reached the Finals in all World Cup competitions during the last year and a half.
He is now training in Italy under an experienced international coach, and has set his sights on the Beijing Olympics.
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