Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar has wind in his sails going into shooting Worlds | Sport-others News

Only two Indian shooters will participate in three events at the 2023 Baku World Championships starting on Thursday and as young as 22-year-old Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar is, a look at his resume points to the experience he has to lead the Indian shooting contingent.
An appearance at the Tokyo Olympics, a gold medal and a team silver in the Junior World Championships in 2021, multiple World Cup and Asian shooting Championships medals, are part of Tomar’s resume. But it’s his form going into the World Championships that makes him one of the shooters to look out for.
In the recent World University Games, he scored 461.7 points in the 50m rifle three positions event to beat USA’s Gavin Barnick, who was part of the 2022 Junior World Championship team that won a gold medal, and Czech Republic’s Jiri Privratsky. He won another gold in the 10m air rifle event, narrowly missing out on a world record after scoring 252.6, and added to that tally with the team gold in the 10m air rifle event as well.
An appearance at the Tokyo Olympics, a gold medal and a team silver in the Junior World Championships in 2021, multiple World Cup and Asian shooting Championships medals, are part of Tomar’s resume. But it’s his form going into the World Championships that makes him one of the shooters to look out for. (File)
That is the kind of form Tomar has taken with him to Baku, a city known for its wind, and their range is no different. It’s a range where shooters adept at ‘shading’ thrive. Shading is when gut-feel physics meets precision – when wind is a factor, shooters look at a flag to see which way it’s blowing, and then adjust their rifles to shoot accordingly. If the wind is blowing to the right, the shooters shoot slightly to the left. What makes the proposition tougher is that shots need to be made within a time limit. Each shot matters and each shot is difficult when wind and time are factored in.
Speaking to The Indian Express prior to leaving for the World Championships, Tomar talked about how the process now comes naturally to him. “Not everyone can be good at shading. Where to shoot, what judgements to make – even in the team, not many shooters like to use shading and only do it when coaches are asking them to do it. But it’s a part of my system now. If I see the flag move a little to the right, even if I don’t want it, my body automatically nudges to the top left,” he said.

The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) calls it the clock system. Where a shooter sets their sight and unleashes a shot based on whether the wind is coming in from the left or right, or even if it’s coming towards the shooter, or moving towards the target. The clock system gives experienced shooters an idea about where to point and snipe when wind and time are not co-operating.
Making matters even tougher for shooters are the new rules introduced the ISSF, changing the event from a 120-shot competition to a 60-shot one. A 60-shot competition means every shot counts. One bad series of 95 is suddenly enough to put one outside the final eight.
Tomar recounted how narrow the margins can be: “In the last World Championship, the highest score in qualification was 593. There were at least 4-5 shooters who had scores of 590 and were in the Top 8. I shot 589 and my rank was 12th and I didn’t make it to the final.”
Tough experience
For Tomar, the confidence to bag India’s second Olympic quota in the 50m rifle three positions event, as well as the 10m air rifle event, has come through some experiences that many Indian shooters have gone through. The Tokyo Olympics, in particular, was a low moment for the contingent. For Tomar, the moment was made worse as his competition was one of the last shooting events at the Tokyo Games.

“My match was on the second-last day of the shooting programme of the Tokyo Olympics. Indian athletes from other disciplines had already won medals. I was thinking about how they might get jobs and get rewarded well for their achievements. Meanwhile in the shooting camp, there were so many stories and controversies. Shooting didn’t have a single medal, despite being the biggest component in the Indian contingent. The environment when I went into my event didn’t feel the best. I went on Instagram and people described me as the last hope,” he said.
For Tomar, the confidence to bag India’s second Olympic quota in the 50m rifle three positions event, as well as the 10m air rifle event, has come through some experiences that many Indian shooters have gone through. (File)
Tomar finished 21st at his first Olympics. He also decided that going on social media before a big event was something he would never do again. But there are some concessions that he continues to give himself. An avid PUBG fan, Tomar decided that the nervousness he felt on the night of a competition was something he could deal with playing with his friends.
“When big events are going on, I switch off from social media. I call home and talk to my brother, or talk to my parents. After that, I occupy my mind playing PUBG with my friends. I have a group of four friends who are part of my squad in PUBG. Pichhle Olympics unke saath khel raha tha, agle Olympics bhi unke saath hi khelunga (Played with them during the last Olympics, will play with them in the next Olympics as well).”
Tomar will be part of the three Paris Olympic quota events – the 10m Air rifle mixed team event on August 18, the men’s 10m Air rifle event on August 19 and the 50m rifle three positions event on August 20.