Riding high on the stupendous success of Indian shooters at the recently concluded Common Wealth Games, where Indian shooters won 16 out of its total tally of 66 medals, the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) president Raninder Singh called for a boycott by India in the Birmingham edition of the Common Wealth Games scheduled to be held in 2022. Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) had backed the local organising committee’s choice to not include Shooting at the Birmingham 2022 CWG.
Singh said this during a meet and greet session with medal winning shooters in the capital. “We have been working on this ridiculous situation – I have personally been in touch with the chairman of the CWGF. If this is not sorted, we would like the Government of India to boycott the 2020 CWG. What is the logic to see a sport which contributes 305 of the medals that India wins at these games to go to the dustbin? We (federation and government) have invested a lot of public funds to come to this level.”
The call for boycott, interestingly comes at a time when the International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach and President of Olympic Council of Asia, HE Shiekh Ahmad Al Sabah, are poised to visit India this week. The sport of shooting is in any case under a threat as Double Trap event has already been axed at the Games.
Shooting, though an optional sport at the CWG, has been played in every edition of the Games since Kingston 1966, except once in Edinburgh in 1970.
Singh has echoed the views of many former players and officials in the NRAI. Pistol legend and currently, junior coach, Jaspal Rana has already aired his view to boycott CWG in future, as the sport is being at the receiving end of Games organising committees.
The NRAI president said that he had given multiple proposals to the Birmingham CWG organising committee which included floating the option of having shooting in Bisley which is just 70 kms from Birmingham. “Cycling is happening in London for God's sake, why can't shooting be located at another location?” The Birmingham 2020 OC has cited logistics and expense while hosting shooting events along with raising the question of legacy. “We have even lobbied with the Indian expat community in Birmingham to make strong representation for its inclusion. If its about money and tickets- we have even asked them how many tickets they want to sell, we can do so from here,” remarked Singh.
The impending axe over shooting comes, ironically at a time when the Union Ministry of Sports is headed by retired colonel Rajyavardhan Rathore, 2004 Athens Olympics Silver medal winner in double trap shooting.