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New Delhi, July 14, 2015: The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), together with the Organizing Committee, unveiled the logo for the 8th Asian Airgun Shooting Championship, scheduled to be held from September 25 till October 1, 2015, at the Karni Singh Shooting Range at Tughlakabad. Shooting fans will get a treat of top quality international shooting after a period of five years, when Indian stars like Abhinav Bindra, Gagan Narang and Jitu Rai lock horns with the likes of reigning Olympic and World Champions Jin Jongoh (Korea), Zhu Qinan (China) and Yang Haoran (China).
There are 12 men and women events in the offing over four days of competition in the senior, youth and junior categories. Airgun competitions are restricted to the Air Rifle and Air Pistol segments.
Expressing his happiness on the occasion, Mr. Raninder Singh, President, NRAI, said, “Shooting has been India’s joint most successful Olympic sport after Hockey. We are confident we will be able to bring greater laurels for the country, come the 2016 Rio Olympics. This (Asian) championship will serve as part of the ongoing preparations towards that goal. I want to thank the Sports Ministry of the Government of India, the Sports Authority of India (SAI), and above all our world class shooters for their relentless support and commitment to the sport, which has been key in helping us bring this high-quality competition to India.”
The senior India shooting squad has already bagged five Rio Olympic quota places, out of a maximum 30 that each nation can win. All five Rio Olympic quota winners, namely 2008 Olympic Gold medalist Abhinav Bindra; London 2012 Bronze medalist Gagan Narang; Pistol aces Jitu Rai and Gurpreet Singh, and Glasgow Commonwealth Games Gold medalist Apurvi Chandela were present on the occasion.
The next assignment for the squad begins on August 6 in Gabala, Azerbaijan where the ISSF World Cup for Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun will see 35 more quota places secured for Rio 2016, hopefully a few more of India as well.
