EXCLUSIVE/ 'It is an emotional moment': India's Olympic Hero Extremely Proud of Bronze Medalist Swapnil Kusale

Swapnil Kusale has conquered Bronze medal in 50m Rifle 3 Positions at Paris Olympics reby ending 12-year-long drought in rifle shooting. Following Gagan Narang's historic Bronze medal win in 10m Air Rifle in London 2012, India only endured disappointment in this sphere but days of celebration have returned. Gagan Narang w has company in glory in form of Swapnil Kusale. Upon witnessing latter at podium, former shooter could t hide his delight for athlete from Maharashtra.

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Gagan Narang Heaps Praise On Swapnil Kusale

Following Swapnil Kusale's clutch display which fetched him Bronze medal at Paris Olympics, Republic TV caught up with Gagan Narang. Olympic medalist showered praise on Kusale and hailed him as inspiration for budding shooters.

"It is a brilliant effort from Swapnil today and three-positioned unit of Indian shooting team. I am very very proud of m. It is an emotional moment for me because I used to shoot this event myself and was one of my favourites. Of course, I missed out on winning a medal in this event, but today Swapnil, what a fantastic effort. I must say, what a great performance. three-position unit was struggling to break through and Swapnil has broken glass ceiling and has me all three position shooters believe in India that we can all win a medal."

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On Manu Bhaker's Unparalleled Achievement

As shooting has till w proved to be only reaper for India at Paris Olympics 2024 in terms of medals, Narang also spared words for medal winners Manu Bhaker, who became first Indian to capture two medals at a single Olympic event, and Sarabjot Singh.

"Manu has h her fare share of disappointments which is very very unfortunate. I think she fueled her fire from Tokyo. fire burnt brighter than ever and she is a very very special athlete. She has also become first Indian to win two medals in one Olympics. and going for a third. She could make all Indians believe that y can win Olympic medals. She has me all Indian women believe that y can win an Olympic medal and y can do anything that y want. What a fantastic achievement so far"

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Gagan Narang Highlights Struggles He H To Face To Eventually Become An Olympic Champion

An Olympic medal is a result of sheer hard work and determination, moreover, struggles become a part and parcel of an athlete's life. To elaborate on subject, Narang highlighted struggles he and his parents h to face to push him to forefront.

"Struggles are a part of every athlete's life. My parents h to sell a house to buy a gun for me and n we stayed on rented house for twenty years. Its a part of life. I believe that se are little little things that make us earn medal and when you win it, victory is sweeter than anything. What an amazing story y've all h. Sarabjot, Manu Bhaker, Swapnil Kusale. y have all come from very very humble backgrounds. This shows that today if you can dream it, you actually achieve it. way government has worked in terms of support given, coordination between federations. IOA is working very hard and it all boils down to giving everything that is required of our athletes and n leaving it up to m to give ir best."