By IANS
New Delhi : The international shooting body Saturday presented a gold medal to the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) as its shooters made the most improvement in the world.
The NRAI won the International Shooting Sport Federation (IAAF) medal for clinching the maximum berths, nine so far, for the 2008 Beijing Olympics Games, said NRAI secretary-general Baljeet Singh Sethi, who received the medal in Nicosia, Cyprus.
“I received the gold medal an hour ago at a meeting of the ISSF administrative council, of which I am a member,” Sethi told IANS over telephone from Nicosia.
“This medal acknowledges that Indian shooting has made the biggest improvement in the world; that India has won the most number of quota places (berths) for the 2008 Olympics, nine,” he said.
Sethi said that the gold medal is presented to the most improved country once in four years, before the Olympics. The ISSF has 141 member countries.
So far Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Abhinav Bindra, Manavjit Singh Sandhu, Anjali Bhagwat, Gagan Narang, Avneet Kaur Sidhu, Sanjeev Rajput, Mansher Singh and Samresh Jung have booked berths at the Olympics.
Sethi was hopeful that the number of Olympic berths could go up to 15 before the start of the games Aug 8-24 next year.
“I am hopeful that we will be able to win five to six more quota places before the Olympics,” he said.
“Our biggest hope is from the Asian Championships, to be held in Kuwait in December, when 28 quotas will be available. I am hopeful of getting five to six quotas there.”
He said that he has also pinned hopes on ace double trap shooter Ronjon Sodhi to get another quota place at the World Championship that began in Nicosia Saturday.