Ace shooter Anjali Bhagwat, one of India's medal hopes at the Beijing Olympics, agrees that Ahmedabad has played a significant role in her career. In 1988, she participated in a national shooting competition held in the city just for the sake of some fun. She was only an 18-year-old at that time.
But as luck would have it, she won a silver medal, and her career took a major turn. Till then, judo and karate were her professional love, as she was pursuing them to be taken up as a career. But one shot of luck changed the course of her journey.
So, is judo's loss, shooting's gain? She simply laughs. "Ahmedabad has definitely been the turning point of my life. It feels good to be back in the city, that too at the beginning of an Olympic year. I had come to participate just for some fun. I wasn't serious about shooting. Never thought that I would win a medal. And when I went back to college (Kirti College in Mumbai), there was a big celebration. It was then that I decided to take up shooting seriously," says Bhagwat, who is in the city to participate in the 51st National Shooting Competition underway at Rifle Club.
She was introduced to shooting by a member of her college's National Cadet Corps when she was pitched into a tournament after some first-rung shooters pulled out. "I wasn't aware of shooting till then," says the 37-year-old, who will represent India at the Beijing Olympics in August 2008 in air-rifle and three position categories.
She has never looked back since then, pocketing several national and international awards. In 2002, she won four gold medals in individual and team events in air-rifle and three position at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester. She was conferred the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award for her performance in the year 2002-03 after winning the Arjuna award in 2000.
Courtesy : Expressindia.com
But as luck would have it, she won a silver medal, and her career took a major turn. Till then, judo and karate were her professional love, as she was pursuing them to be taken up as a career. But one shot of luck changed the course of her journey.
So, is judo's loss, shooting's gain? She simply laughs. "Ahmedabad has definitely been the turning point of my life. It feels good to be back in the city, that too at the beginning of an Olympic year. I had come to participate just for some fun. I wasn't serious about shooting. Never thought that I would win a medal. And when I went back to college (Kirti College in Mumbai), there was a big celebration. It was then that I decided to take up shooting seriously," says Bhagwat, who is in the city to participate in the 51st National Shooting Competition underway at Rifle Club.
She was introduced to shooting by a member of her college's National Cadet Corps when she was pitched into a tournament after some first-rung shooters pulled out. "I wasn't aware of shooting till then," says the 37-year-old, who will represent India at the Beijing Olympics in August 2008 in air-rifle and three position categories.
She has never looked back since then, pocketing several national and international awards. In 2002, she won four gold medals in individual and team events in air-rifle and three position at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester. She was conferred the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award for her performance in the year 2002-03 after winning the Arjuna award in 2000.
Courtesy : Expressindia.com