Former Indian cricket team coach Rahul Dravid on July 28 praised Manu Bhaker for winning the bronze medal in 10m air pistol shooting at the Paris Olympics 2024. Dravid called it inspirational for the young shooters of India. Rahul Dravid said that it was a great day for India. Manu Bhaker gave India its first medal in Paris Olympics.
India’s 2024 T20 World Cup-winning coach Rahul Dravid was spotted in Paris. They were seen talking about the Olympic Games. Not only this, Dravid also praised Manu Bhaker’s journey of winning the historic bronze medal. Let us tell you that on July 28, 22-year-old Manu Bhakar, born in Haryana, became the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal in 10 meter air pistol shooting.
Manu Bhaker opens India’s medal account in Paris Olympics. Manu ended the 12-year drought of Olympic medal in shooting. Manu became only the fifth shooter to win an Olympic medal in shooting after Abhinav Bindra, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Vijay Kumar and Gagan Narang. In such a situation, Dravid praised Bhakar and said how he registered a historic victory, leaving behind the horrific memories of the Tokyo Olympics.
Many years of sacrifice…’
Dravid said, after the disappointment of what happened in Tokyo, to come here and overcome it, it is incredible. To come here and compete and win a bronze medal. This is an unprecedented achievement. Such achievements require many years of sacrifice, hard work and perseverance. I think we know how hard it is for athletes, how many sacrifices they have to make. I can imagine how much pressure there is in these games.
‘Great day for India’
The former Indian head coach further said, this is the pinnacle of his game. For many of these athletes, nothing could be bigger than the Olympics. For him, to be able to do it at this level, to be able to perform like that under pressure, congratulations to him. It is indeed a great day for Indian sports. This is an inspiring story for so many young boys and girls across the country.
Had made up my mind to quit shooting
It is noteworthy that Manu Bhakar had also thought of quitting shooting last year, but then he again found his happiness in this sport. This makes his achievement even more inspiring. Bhakar secured third place in the final. He scored a total of 221.7 marks.
