Can Indian shooters make Tokyo Olympics an unforgettable bonanza?

High expectations from Manu Bhaker

Manu Bhaker - The shooter with the highest expectations

While Indian shooting has earned many historic laurels for India at the Olympics, it has been an all-male bastion. Not a single woman has won a medal for India at the Olympics, and the only one who went close to doing so was Anjali Vedpathak Bhagwat. The veteran shooter made the cut for Women's 10 m Air Rifle at the Sydney Olympics, but finished last amongst the 8 finalists.

So how is this connected to Manu Bhaker? The young shooter is one of the brightest hopes for an Olympic medal since Anjali Bhagwat. She is not only impressive with her shooting, but also consistent. Manu created history with her smashing debut at the Youth Olympics, where she won a gold medal in the 10 m air pistol category.

In addition to the gold at the Youth Olympics, Manu has a number of medals to her credit. Commonwealth Games, World Championships, you name it and she has it. As such, one would expect nothing less than a podium finish from her when she tries her luck at Tokyo. The only thing she needs to keep in control is her jitters, which prevented her from creating history at the Jakarta Asian Games in 2018.