Manu Bhaker scripted history as she became the first woman shooter from India to win an Olympic medal in the 10m air pistol event at the Paris Olympics Games 2024 on Sunday. Ending a 12-year wait for India for an Olympic medal in the shooting, she won a bronze medal in the 10m air pistol event with a score of 221.7. This is also the first medal India won at the paris Olympics this year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi dialed Olympic medalist shooter Manu Bhaker on Sunday and congratulated her on winning a Bronze medal in Women’s 10 M Air Pistol at Paris Olympics 2024.
South Korea’s Ye Jin clinched the gold medal with an Olympic record of 243.2 points. Her compatriot, Kim Yeji, settled for silver with 241.3 points.
Who is Manu Bhaker?
Manu Bhaker’s Tokyo campaign had ended in tears after her pistol malfunctioned during the qualification of the same event. Her historic win at the Paris Olympics is now seen as a redemption.
Bhaker was born in Jhajjar, Haryana – the state known for its boxers and wrestlers. At the age of 14, she decided to join shooting. Before shooting, she pursued sports such as tennis, skating and boxing in school. She had also participated in ‘thang ta’ martial art.
“She then impulsively decided to try her hand at shooting when she was just 14 – just after the 2016 Rio Olympics ended – and loved it. Within a week, Manu Bhaker asked her father to get her a sport shooting pistol to hone her craft,” Bhaker’s biography at Olympics website read.
At the 2017 National Shooting Championships, Manu stunned Olympian and former world No. 1 Heena Sidhu by winning nine gold medals. She had shot a score of 242.3 to beat Sidhu’s record to win the 10m air pistol final.
She won a gold medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She also won the Youth Olympics Gold in the women’s 10m air pistol event in 2018.
Manu Bhaker’s first reaction after winning bronze at Paris olympics
In her first reaction after winning the bronze at Paris Olympics, Manu Bhaker said, “I am feeling great. It feels surreal.” She said, “I put in a lot of effort. Even for the last shot, I was fighting with all the energy I had.
Bhaker cited ‘Gita’ when asked what was going on her mind at the time of the games. She said, “Honestly, I read a lot of Gita… so what was going through my mind was that just do what you are meant to do and just do what you are supposed to do… You can’t control the outcome of the destiny. That’s what Krishna told Arjuna, that focus on karma and not the outcome of the karma…and that was running in my head.”
So it’s GITA & Krishna during the Mahabharat! Where the karma played the role.
Manu Bhaker… what a clear thought. Congrats once again.#bronze #paris2024olympics pic.twitter.com/le9zSfS4jd
— Sourabh Sanyal 🇮🇳 (@sourabhsanyal) July 28, 2024
Three years ago at the Tokyo Games, Manu had returned medal-less due to misfiring in all her three events. “The past can remain in the past,” she said when asked to comment on her performance. “This medal is for all of us. I am really happy that I was the medium for this medal for India. It’s a very good feeling,” she further added.
In a post on X, Bhaker said that winning the medal is a dream come true, “not just for me, but for everyone who has supported me”. She added, “I am deeply grateful to the NRAI, SAI, Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Coach Jaspal Rana sir, Haryana government and OGQ. I dedicate this victory to my country for their incredible support and love.”