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From one shooter at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, the Indian shooting contingent has made rapid strides, with a record 10 representatives having made it to the Tokyo Paralympics.
Led by Para Shooting World Cup gold medalists Manish Narwal and Singhraj, the team will look to return home with multiple medals.
As we wait for the shooting events to begin in Tokyo, here's everything you need to know about India's shooting team.
When and where will the shooting events be held at the Tokyo Paralympics?
In total, 154 shooters will descend upon the Asaka Shooting Range to vie for medals from 30 August-5 September.
Read: Tokyo Paralympics 2021: India schedule with timings [IST] and telecast details for all events
Classification of shooters at the Tokyo Paralympics
Sport Class SH1 (Pistol): This pistol class is for athletes with upper and/or lower limb impairment.
Sport Class SH1 (Rifle): This rifle class is for athletes with lower limb impairment.
Sport Class SH2 (Rifle): This rifle-only event is for athletes with upper limb impairment, all or not in combination with lower limb impairment.
Sport Class SG-S (Trap): This category is for wheelchair-bound athletes with poor balance and/or trunk stability.
Sport Class SG-L (Trap): In this category, shooters with good balance and trunk function compete from a standing position.
Sport Class SG-U (Trap): The only difference with the SG-L class is that in this category, the athletes have an impairment in the non-shooting arm.
Indian shooters at the Tokyo Paralympics
The 10-member Indian team comprises eight male and two female shooters.
Here's the complete list:
(The events for each shooter are in brackets)
#1 Manish Narwal (P1 - Men's 10m Air Pistol SH1, P4 - Mixed 50m Pistol SH1)
All of 19, Manish Narwal has already established himself as a top contender for medals in the para shooting world. He announced his arrival at the 2018 Asian Para Games, where he won a gold and a silver.
Having added a couple of bronze medals at the World Championships since then, the Faridabad-based pistol shooter started the 2021 season with a bang. He broke the world record to take the P4 mixed 50m pistol SH1 gold at the Al Ain 2021 Para Shooting World Cup earlier in the year.
The fact that he showed excellent composure to beat a field full of world champions and Paralympic medalists speaks volumes about the teenager's maturity and puts him in pole position from the Indian contingent for a podium finish.
#2 Singhraj (P1 - Men's 10m Air Pistol SH1, P4 - Mixed 50m Pistol SH1)
With the veteran Singhraj in the squad as well, India has a chance to earn multiple medals from pistol shooting at the Tokyo Paralympics. The 39-year-old, hailing from Bahadurgarh, Haryana, has a World Championships bronze medal in his kitty that he won in 2019.
This year he threw down the gauntlet to his challengers with a gold medal in P1 men's 10m air pistol SH1 at the Al Ain 2021 World Shooting Para Sport World Cup.
#3 Deepender Singh (P1 - Men's 10m Air Pistol SH1)
27-year-old Deepender Singh from Uttar Pradesh is the third Indian shooter in the Men's 10m Air Pistol SH1 category. He has a silver medal from the Para Sport World Cup 2018 in Chateauroux and a gold medal from the World Shooting Para Sport World Cup 2017 in Bangkok in his kitty.
Read: 5 Indian shooters who can win gold at Paralympics 2021
#4 Akash (P3 - Mixed 25m Pistol SH1, P4 - Mixed 50m Pistol SH1)
Born into a family of farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Baghpat district, 31-year-old Akash has had to face a lot of obstacles but those couldn't put him down. The determined shooter has made his mark in international events, with a couple of gold medals from the Osijek 2019 Shooting Para Sport World Cup standing out. He will look to bring that confidence when he steps into the Asaka Shooting Range at the Tokyo Paralympics.
#5 Rahul Jakhar (P3 - Mixed 25m Pistol SH1)
Rahul Jakhar is coming into the Tokyo Paralympics in a rich vein of form. The 35-year-old topped the podium at the Para Shooting World Cup in Lima, Peru earlier this year to earn his Paralympic berth.
#6 Deepak (R1 - Men's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1, R3 - Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1, R6 - Mixed 50m Rifle Prone SH1, R7 - Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions SH1)
Ambala native Deepak Saini is the only Indian male shooter to compete in four events at the Tokyo Paralympics. Saini's biggest accomplishment so far remains a silver medal from the Asian Para Games in 2018 and he will hope to draw inspiration from that performance when he enters the range at the Tokyo Paralympics.
He qualified for the Games with a commendable showing at the World Shooting Para Sport World Cup in Lima, Peru, earlier in the year. Despite finishing fourth in 50m Rifle Three Positions SH1, he looks poised to challenge for the top names at the Tokyo Paralympics.
#7 Sidhartha Babu (R3 - Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1, R6 - Mixed 50m Rifle Prone SH1)
Kerala's Sidhartha Babu is an inspiration to many. A former karate teacher, he met with an accident that paralyzed him. Babu turned to shooting following that and taught himself the basics of the sport by reading books.
The determined Sidhartha Babu went on to compete against mainstream shooters, beating them to win the 50m men's prone air rifle shooting gold at the 2016 Kerala State Shooting Championship. Since then, he hasn't looked back and has won several laurels for India, including bronze medals at the 2017 Para Shooting World Cup and the Al Ain 2021 World Shooting World Cup earlier this year.
The Thiruvananthapuram-based engineering graduate, who got a chance to train under former Olympic champion Sergei Martynov in 2018, secured his Paralympic qualification at the 2019 World Championship in Sydney. With a strong performance at the World Cup at the start of the year, the 42-year-old will be gunning for glory in Tokyo.
#8 Swaroop Mahavir Unhalkar (R1 - Men's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1)
34-year-old Swaroop Mahavir Unhalkar is also part of the Indian shooting contingent for the Tokyo Paralympics. The Kolhapur-based rifle shooter qualified for the Games in 2019 and is inspired by top Indian markswoman Rahi Sarnobat, who also hails from the same place.
Unhalkar has been honing his skills under the tutelage of Kiran Khandare at the Gun for Glory Academy in Balewadi for the past few months. With good scores in training under his belt, he aims to do well in Tokyo.
#9 Rubina Francis (P2 - Women's 10m Air Pistol SH1)
22-year-old Rubina Francis of Jabalpur was introduced to shooting in 2013. Since then, she has made rapid strides to establish herself as a top contender for medals.
Francis has made her mark right from the junior level, setting a junior world record in 10m air pistol team event at the 2017 World Shooting Para Sports Championships. She went on to claim a bronze at the 2019 World Para Championships in Croatia.
This year, Francis put up a stunning performance at the Para World Cup Shooting in Lima, Peru, to clinch gold in the 10m air pistol event with a new world record. She will thus be heading to the Tokyo Paralympics with a lot of momentum behind her and will be keen to grab a medal.
#10 Avani Lekhara (R2 - Women's 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1, R3 - Mixed 10m Air Rifle Prone SH1, R6 - Mixed 50m Rifle Prone SH1, R8 - Women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions SH1)
![Indian para-shooter Avani Lekhara [Image Credits: Avani Lekhara/Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/08/574e8-16292928463645-800.jpg)
19-year-old Avani Lekhara was encouraged to take up shooting in 2015, three years after suffering a horrific car accident that left her wheelchair-bound. It was after reading Beijing Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra's autobiography, 'A Shot At History' that the young Jaipur girl started taking the sport more seriously.
Since then the teenager has been shining in domestic competitions and has a bronze medal from the National Championships to show for. On the international front, too, she has been making her presence felt and has accounted for three silver medals and a bronze at different World Cups, with her latest medal, a silver, coming at the 2021 Para Shooting World Cup in Al Ain earlier this year.
The world No. 4 will definitely be one to watch out for at the Tokyo Paralympics, where she will take part in four events.
