New Delhi: Manu Bhaker has brought glory to India by winning the bronze medal in the 10 meter air pistol event at the Paris Olympics. Bollywood celebrities including Preity Zinta have expressed happiness over her victory and congratulated her. Kriti Kharbanda also expressed her happiness by sharing the news of Manu Bhaker winning the bronze medal. Rajkumar Rao shared an Insta story and wrote, ‘Congratulations Manu Bhaker, we are all proud of you.’
Jackie Shroff commented on the success, ‘Account opened… Manu Bhaker won bronze medal in 10 meter air pistol event. India’s first medal in Paris Olympics.’ India last won a medal in shooting in London Olympics in 2012. Rapid-fire pistol shooter Vijay Kumar won silver and Gangan Narang won bronze medal.
Manu Bhaker was disqualified from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics due to a fault in her pistol, but her hard work and determination earned her a bronze medal in Paris. Manu Bhaker is India’s first female shooter to win an Olympic medal. Manu tried her hand at sports like tennis, skating and boxing during her school days. Apart from this, she was also very good at a form of martial arts. After the 2016 Rio Olympics, at the age of just 14, she entered the world of shooting and developed a great interest in this sport. Manu was suggested by her father to take up shooting as a sport.
Family always together
Manu’s father Ram Kishan Bhaker has always been supportive of his daughter. Her father’s support took Manu to the Olympics and she won a historic medal on Sunday. At the 2017 National Shooting Championship, Manu stunned Olympian and former world number one Heena Sidhu by winning the 10m air pistol final with a record score of 242.3. After this, she won a silver medal at the 2017 Asian Junior Championship.
Won gold in ISSF World Cup at the age of 16
Manu made her mark at the international level. Making her debut at the ISSF World Cup in Mexico, she broke the junior world record in the qualification round and made it to the women’s 10m air pistol final and also managed to win the gold medal. At just 16, she became the youngest Indian to win a gold medal at the ISSF World Cup.
Tags: Rajkummar Rao
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 28, 2024, 23:47 IST