Pistol in hand, Jitu shoots golden tribute to outgoing event

JITU RAI squinted his eyes at the target, placed at a distance of 50m from him, as if to see whether it was similar to the others standing intheadjoininglanes.it,ofcourse,was.butthe 6.6 he shot got Rai wondering.

Free pistol does that to a shooter, Rai later said. Create doubts and scenarios that, many say, are incomparable to other events in this sport. From 50 yards, a shooter has to aim at a target that is almost as big as an iphone while negotiatingthewind,sunandothernaturalelements.

For these reasons — the skills, conditions and ultimate test of patience — they call free pistol the Test match of shooting. Ironically, here too the ‘Test’ variant of the sport is fighting a lost battle.

The International Olympic Committee (Ioc)evaluatedeveryeventpostrioolympics. Theassessmentwasdonebasedonseveralparameters such as television ratings, universality, cost factor, attendance at the Games, et cetera.

Among shooting’s 15 Olympic events, it is learntfreepistolwasranked14th.usingthatas the basis, and a further study of their own, the Internationalshootingsportfederation(issf) decided to drop free pistol from the Tokyo Olympics.

A day after the ISSF communicated its decisiontotheioc,raipaidafittingtributetothe outgoing event. Amanpreet Singh delivered a laudable performance as the support cast as India achieved its first gold-silver finish at the World Cup. It’s a bit harsh on Amanpreet that his memorable debut in a World Cup final will be remembered for Rai’s heroic comeback.

Atonestageinthefinal,amanpreethadan advantage of 8.6 points over Rai. But the 29year-old, in seventh position then, overcame thedeficitinthefinal12shots.tomakeasporting parallel, this was akin to that Liverpool Champions League final comeback or the famous Indian chase in the Natwest final at Lord’s. Dead and buried at the half-way stage but never the one to give up.

He has done that while winning the Asian Games gold, the bronze in the 10m air pistol on Tuesday and once again on Wednesday. “Aise ladai ladte ladte, ek-ek ko peeche karke jaane mein maza aata hai (I enjoy fighting such battles, overtaking a shooter one after the other),” the Armyman said.

It’s unnerving the way Rai goes about his job. Unlike the day before, he wasn’t receiving any help from the other finalists. Each of them was shooting 10s while Rai struggled with 8s and9s.itwasinsharpcontrasttothefinequalifying round he and Amanpreet had.

But the conditions had changed quite a bit since then. In the morning, it was cloudy but the sun was out when the final began at 1pm. It took Rai more time than the others to get usedtothereflectionoftheraysfromtheblack target,whichaffectedhisvision.theoccasional gust of wind added to the complexities.

By the time Rai got accustomed to the conditions, the others — especially Amanpreet – had raced ahead. That’s when he began his now-habitual comeback. It began with a 10.8, a near-perfect shot, and then produced scores ofhigh10satwill.thewind,thathadpickedup since the final began, was no more a factor.

The others in a low-weight field, though, begantostruggle.raipickedonemanatatime, getting involved in elimination duels and emerging superior each time until he and Amanpreet were the only ones left.

Allthiswhile,amanpreetwasenjoyingthe bestdayofhiscareer.hehasbeenatmorethan 20 World Cups. But this was his first final. That too while returning to the squad after spending three years in exile owing to poor form.

He was guided by fellow shooters Samaresh Jung and Gagan Narang during the ‘most depressing phase’ of his career. In a refreshingly laid-back style that defined Jung, Amanpreet kept raising the bar for the other shooters with every shot of his. Until he and Rai were the only ones left.

By now, Rai had reduced the deficit from 8.6 points to 0.3. Two shots separated Amanpreet and his first World Cup gold. Two shots separated Rai and another comeback that would only add to his growing legend.

Amidst mad cheering, the click of the trigger was barely audible. And the noise only grewwhenthescoresflashedontheelectronic board. Shot 23: Amanpreet – 8.6; Rai – 10.0.

For the first time, Rai had taken the lead. Now the pressure was on Amanpreet to come upwithabigshot.helosthisfocus,andshotan 8.2. Rai, unwavering in all the noise, hit a 10.5. “The challenge to return after shooting poorly isgreat,”raisaid.“ididthatattheasiangames, too. Winning the gold with the last shot. This wasn’t my first comeback.”