Manu Bhaker rescues India from medal oblivion…at last!

The final shot from Manu Bhakerrsquos pistol at Parisrsquo Chateauroux Shooting Centre may not have resonated beyond the packed hall on Sunday afternoon but its impact reverberated across IndiaThe quiet click of the trigger was a triumphant bang that lifted the spirits of over a billion Indians back homelsquoShabaash Manursquo lsquoChak De Indiarsquo lsquoManu jeet gayirsquo were some of the most frequently chanted cheers from the predominantly Indiasupporting crowdIn the countryrsquos Olympic history since its Beijing edition no individual medal has held such significance in this discipline for so many peopleFor Bhaker it was more than a personal victory it symbolised redemption for an entire nation The longstanding scepticism about Indiarsquos potential in shooting events at the Olympics was shattered and the dismissive notion that lsquono shooter in current times is good enough to win a medalrsquo was finally put to restThe global media observed with a mix of bemusement and curiosity as grown adults in India danced like children their faces wet with tears of joy The sheer improbability of Bhakerrsquos victory added to the emotional crescendoPM Modi congratulates Manu Bhaker on her maiden Olympic medalPMModi ManuBhaker OlympicMedal Tokyo2020 IndiaOlympics ProudMoment realmanubhaker PMOIndia narendramodi credit Media_SAI pictwittercomvake1m3Ao7mdash Mid Day mid_day July 28 2024The script for the womenrsquos 10m air pistol final seemed tailormade for a suspenseful narrative some would sayBhaker who had qualified for the final on Saturday with a total score of 580 exuded a calm and collected demeanour as the first round approached Her initial five shotsmdasha stellar 522mdashset an impressive tone for what was yet to come She followed this with a score of 501 in Series 2 bringing her total to 1003 Gradually Bhaker chipped away at the lead of Korearsquos Ye Jin Oh staying put in second place for a little whileAlso ReadHattrick of medals will be tough for SindhuInside the hall a profound silence enveloped the audience amplifying the suspense It was in this moment of heightened pressure that champions are truly forged and the 22yearold showcased her remarkable composureKim Yeji managed to close the gap by the end of the fiveshot series relegating Bhaker to third place Bhaker finished with 22 shots accumulating a score of 2217 but narrowly missed out on the silverware by just 01 points in the penultimate seriesWinning this medal is a dream come true not just for me but for everyone who has supported me I am deeply grateful to the NRAI SAI Ministry of Youth Affairs amp Sports Coach Jaspal Rana sir Haryana government and OGQ I dedicate this victory to my country for their incrediblehellip pictwittercomhnzGjNwUhvmdash Manu Bhaker realmanubhaker July 28 2024Manu Bhaker gets the ball rolling for TeamIndia with a Bronze medal in 10m pistol shootingCheer4Bharat amp watch more action from Paris2024 LIVE on Sports18 amp streaming FREE on JioCinema OlympicsonJioCinema OlympicsonSports18JioCinemaSports pictwittercomTpD9dAuzOvmdash JioCinema JioCinema July 28 2024Bronze it was and Bhakerrsquos smile though restrained spoke volumes of her triumphTurning to embrace coach Jaspal Rana who had trained her for months away from prying media Bhakerrsquos modesty was evidentAlso ReadMotherhood could have cost Olympian Deepika husband Atanu wouldnrsquot let itWhen asked about her feelings she responded with characteristic serenity ldquoAfter Tokyo I was very disappointed and it took me a very long time to overcome that Frankly speaking I really canrsquot explain how good I am feeling today I was fighting with all the energy I had Grateful that I won the bronze I read the Bhagwat Gita and always tried to do what I was supposed to do left everything else to god We canrsquot fight destiny sicrdquo Manu told reportersTHE FIRST MEDAL FOR TEAM INDIA IS HERE Medal Confirmed for Manu Bhaker with a stellar performance in the 10m air pistol Watch her LIVE on Sports18 amp Streaming free on JioCinema httpstcof4qYLLw9ppCheer4Bharat OlympicsonJioCinema OlympicsonSports18hellip pictwittercomq0HE8qVGOfmdash JioCinema JioCinema July 28 2024Back in Haryanarsquos Jhajjar the Bhaker household wore a festive look with relatives and family friends pouring in to celebrate the occasionHappiness knew no bounds among the Bhakers Manursquos uncle Baljeet Singh said he had been nervous but hopeful of a gold medal ldquoWe hoped for a gold medal but we are still happy She is the youngest Indian woman to win a medal She is very hardworking We hope in the remaining events she will clinch gold medalsrdquo he told ANI ldquoI am really happy today She is not only my daughter she is the daughter of the nation The entire country is proud of Manu two of her events are remaining we expect her to perform better Manu got a lot of support from the government and the federation She could achieve this only because of the blessings of the people of the country This is a huge achievement sicrdquo Manursquos father Ram Kishan Bhaker was quoted as sayingYoursquove truly made us proud Manu Bhaker has made history by clinching Indiarsquos first medal at Paris2024 Watch more Olympic action live on Sports18 amp stream for FREE on JioCinema OlympicsonJioCinema OlympicsonSports18 Cheer4Bharat JioCinemaSports pictwittercomqQlE8ZEJ2xmdash JioCinema JioCinema July 28 2024Sundayrsquos bronze marked Indiarsquos first Olympic medal in womenrsquos 10m air pistol individual event and fifth overall in shooting The first came from Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore who etched his name in the annals of Indiarsquos Olympic history with a silver medal in menrsquos double trap at the 2004 Athens Games After a lengthy hiatus Abhinav Bindra gave Indians a reason to cheer with his goldmedal feat in 2008 Four years later Gagan Narang and Vijay Kumar secured bronze and silver in menrsquos 10m air rifle and 25m rapid fire pistol respectively In London