ISSF World Championships 2023: Indians aim for 48 Olympic quotas up for grabs

The ISSF World Championships are starting on August 14 in Baku, Azerbaijan. A 22-member Indian squad, comprising rifle and pistol shooters, will eye securing Olympic quotas and fine-tuning their performances ahead of the Asian Games in Hangzhou.

While the pistol team, comprising shooters like Rhythm Sangwan, Manu Bhaker and Esha Singh, will remain the same for the Asian Games, there will be little changes in the rifle squad.

In the 2022 edition of the ISSF Shooting World Championships, India were 7th in the medal tally with two gold medals.

India's potential medallists at World Championships

Aishwary Pratap will be India's best bet in the men’s 50m 3P rifle event, given his recent form. He won gold medals in the Changwon and Cairo editions of the ISSF World Cup.

In women's 10m air rifle, the best placed Indians for a quota place will be Tilottoma Sen, who won a bronze medal at the Cairo World Cup.

Likewise, Rhythm Sangwan and Manu Bhaker will be well placed to seal their places in the women’s 25m sports pistol event of the Paris Olympics, considering the wealth of experience they carry on their shoulders. A total of four places will be up for grabs in the event in Baku.

All eyes will be on Hriday Hazarika, who replaced Rudrankksh Patil in the men’s air rifle contingent. Likewise, Ashi Chouksey, who is only listed in women’s 50m 3-position at Baku, will be under the radar.

Eyes will also be on Niraj Kumar who replaced Swapnil Kusale, who earned a quota place for Paris Olympics, in the men’s 50m 3P rifle event. Niraj, who won team gold in 2021, will compete alongside Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Akhil Sheoran, which gives India an opportunity to secure their second Olympic quota in the event at the World Championships, where four quota places for the Paris 2024 will be up for grab.

Quota calculation

India has so far booked three quota places. Bhowneesh Mendiratta (trap), Rudrankksh Patil (10m rifle) and Swapnil Kusale (50m rifle) are the three shooters who have won India quotas so far.

A total of 48 Olympic quota places will be for grabs at the World Championships in Baku across 15 events.

These 48 are part of the 312 quotas (156 per gender) for shooting at the Paris Olympics that will be won at designated ISSF Championships that take place between 14 August 2022 and 9 June 2024.

Each country is eligible to obtain a maximum of 24 quotas (12 for each gender).

The Olympic qualification events in Baku this month will be taking place from August 17 to August 24, and the non-Olympic competition continuing until Friday 31st August.

The Olympic quota places are awarded to National Olympic Committee (NOC) rather than the specific athlete.

India team at World Championships

Men’s air rifle: Divyansh Singh Panwar, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Hriday Hazarika

Women’s air rifle: Ramita, Mehuli Ghosh, Tilottama Sen

Men’s 50m rifle 3-position: Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Akhil Sheoran, Niraj Kumar

Women’s 50m rifle 3-position: Sift Kaur Samra, Ashi Chouksey, Manini Kaushik

Men’s air pistol: Sarabjot Singh, Shiva Narwal, Arjun Singh Cheema

Women’s air pistol: Divya TS, Esha Singh, Palak

Men’s 25m rapid fire pistol: Anish, Vijayveer Sidhu, Adarsh Singh

Women’s 25m sports pistol: Rhythm Sangwan, Manu Bhaker, Esha Singh

Air rifle mixed team: Divyansh Singh Panwar/Ramita; Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar/Mehuli Ghosh

Air pistol mixed team: Sarabjot Singh/Divya TS; Shiva Narwal/Esha Singh