New Delhi: Niraj Kumar fell in love with capturing at a NCC camp throughout his faculty days in his hometown of Hoshiarpur, and it grew right into a ardour so sturdy that he charted his personal course simply to proceed enjoying the game.
Niraj Kumar with coach Manoj Kumar after profitable gold medal on the Nationwide Video games (HT)
Because the time he was 15, he began travelling alone for competitions. Earlier than his twelfth boards, he satisfied his household to purchase him a Walther rifle. In flip, he promised them he would full his commencement. Whereas he began profitable on the home degree, he didn’t have the cash to purchase ammunition for coaching. He regarded for a job that would safe his future. This led him to chase a job within the Navy. He received medals at successive junior nationwide championships to land his promised job in 2018.
“Life on the capturing vary has been a lot simpler since I obtained the job within the Navy. I’m able to concentrate on capturing and my household advised me, ‘aap ki himmat hai, aap jitna shooting karna chahte ho karo (you have the courage, do as much shooting you want,” says soft-spoken Niraj, 25, after winning gold at the 38th National Games in Dehradun.
His third Games medal in a row, having won gold in Gujarat and silver in Goa, was special. He beat a field including Paris Olympics bronze medallist Swapnil Kusale and two-time Olympian Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar — India’s two greatest rifle three place shooters. Niraj, too, has been among the many most constant shooters and completed 4th within the Olympic choice trials at residence. On Thursday, Niraj was on hearth main from begin to end for a rating of 464.1. Aishwary took silver (462.4 factors) and Kusale settled for bronze (447.7).
“To play alongside Swapnil and win is very motivating. He was sharing his experience from the Paris Olympics. He is a few years older than me and I have known him since my junior days. He is very hardworking,” Niraj advised HT.
Coach Manoj Kumar, who has educated him on the Nationwide Centre of Excellence right here at Karni Singh Vary, calls him a really aggressive shooter. “He might not show it but he wants to win every time he competes. He is consistent and there’s a drive to prove himself,” he says.
That pursuit of excellence began when Niraj was in class. The truth is, India’s first particular person Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra’s journey motivated Niraj. “Nobody in my family has any background in sport. It’s just that I joined a NCC camp in school and loved the sport. I came to know of Abhinav Bindra and what he has achieved and it was a big motivation.”
Niraj began in inclined however the occasion was discontinued as an Olympic occasion subsequent yr. “I wanted to switch to three positions but it’s an expensive sport. The weapon and ammunition are costly. I needed my own weapon. My family wanted me to study and get a job. Any middle-class family would want a secure future for his child,” he says.
Niraj made a pact along with his household. He advised them he would clear his twelfth boards and care for his commencement in the event that they purchase him a weapon. Niraj’s father — Ravinder Singh, an Armyman — agreed. His board exams clashed with junior choice trials in Delhi.
Niraj would journey from Hoshiarpur to Delhi by bus at night time, and journey again the identical day after trials. He couldn’t make it to the junior India crew however did effectively on the exams. A brand new Walther gun that price ₹3.5 lakh was his prized possession. “Before the gun came I was doing mostly dry holding or rented a gun to shoot in matches. The moment I got the rifle I got a medal (silver) in 2016 in junior nationals,” he fondly recollects.
To proceed within the sport and swap to rifle three positions, he wanted common coaching. He headed to then Navy coach and former worldwide PT Raghunath and sought assist. “I tried to convince sir that I want to join the Navy as I am not able to support my training financially. He said, ‘Come to me next time if you perform well, we will take you.’”
That was motive sufficient for Niraj to win his first particular person gold in junior championship within the subsequent Nationals. “I walked up to him with the gold medal and he called me from trials in Coimbatore.”
Niraj joined the Navy in 2018 and is posted as Chief Petty Officer. The identical yr he broke into the India junior crew and has by no means regarded again, capturing with an ambition to win an Olympic medal like Bindra and Kusale.