Shooting
'I credit Manu for having patched up with Jaspal': Abhinav Bindra
Manu Bhaker, the Paris Olympics bronze medallist, had a fallout with her coach Jaspal Rana after Tokyo debacle. The duo patched up before the Paris Olympics.
Shooter Abhinav Bindra is a 2008 Beijing Olympics gold medallist.
Legendary shooter Abhinav Bindra, the 2008 Beijing Olympics gold medallist, said he is 'extremely' proud of Manu Bhaker, who won two bronze medals at the just concluded Paris Olympics 2024.
“It was a fantastic Olympics for her, she's made the country proud. She's taught everyone about resilience, how to sail well, and bounce back from disappointment. It's been fantastic to watch," said Bindra in an interaction with Jio Cinema.
"The greatest moment of the Olympics for me was when she finished qualification on day one, I saw a picture of hers and she didn't have a smile on her face. That told me she was going to do well. I'm extremely proud of her. She has a bright future ahead. She's 22, hungry, wants to go on, and I'm sure come LA, she'll do even better," stated Bindra.
Manu, who failed to shine in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and faced severe criticism, won two bronze medals in the women's and mixed 10m air pistol events, and came close to winning another in the 25m pistol event, where she finished fourth.
After the Tokyo Olympics, Manu had a fallout with her coach Jaspal Rana and both broke away. However, Manu and Jaspal patched up before the Paris Olympics.
"Jaspal Rana is a treasure trove of knowledge, a hard taskmaster, and I think that's a good thing. I had coaches I loved and ones I severely disliked but found a way to work with them," said Bindra.
"I credit Manu for having patched up with Jaspal after a difficult couple of years, which is normal in a coach-athlete relationship. Athletes are sensitive people and when we're under pressure, that sensitivity heightens. Credit to both of them for having forged this relationship back and the results are here for everybody to see," said Bindra.
"It's a lesson to our athletes that sometimes you'll get points of view from other quarters that you'll dislike. It is important to not rubbish that advice and soak it in. Be a good listener and you could get some advice or a nugget of information which will end up being the most valuable lesson you'll ever learn," he added.
