Rajveer Singh Gill, 19, a shooting prodigy from Dakha village near Mullanpur, who had recently won a bronze medal in the men’s team finals of the ISSF Junior World Championship in South America, feels that the country lacks the infrastructure required for skeet, and the government should work on the advancement of facilities.
Rajveer was honoured by local MLA Manpreet Singh Ayali at the former’s house.
The shooting champion said, “Unfortunately many people in our country don’t even know about skeet. Our players can do wonders if the government provides financial aid and develops the infrastructure required for the game. A poor person cannot afford to play it.”
He added that as there is only one shooting range in Ludhiana (Talwara village), his father got a personal shooting range constructed for him at their farmhouse.
Rajveer took inspiration from his father Manmohan Singh Gill, who is also a national skeet player and the sarpanch of his village.
“I am living my father’s dream. It wasn’t easy for me to practice along with my studies in school. While pursuing law from Patiala, I managed to devote time to my game. My father got me the best possible training,” stated Gill. Sharing his experience of participating in the world championship, Rajveer said that the players who can hold their nerves under pressure succeed.
“A total of seven teams qualified for the finals. The pressure in the finals is always immense, and one needs to have a cool temperament while focusing on the target. There is a huge difference between the shooting ranges which we have in Punjab and the international ranges. Since it was my second international world championship, I was familiar with the pressure. I had also participated in the Skeet World Cup held in Italy in 2018,” told Singh.
{{/usCountry}}“A total of seven teams qualified for the finals. The pressure in the finals is always immense, and one needs to have a cool temperament while focusing on the target. There is a huge difference between the shooting ranges which we have in Punjab and the international ranges. Since it was my second international world championship, I was familiar with the pressure. I had also participated in the Skeet World Cup held in Italy in 2018,” told Singh.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, MLA Ayali congratulated Rajveer for making the country proud.
“It is so pleasing to see our young sportsmen bringing laurels to the country. His achievement will inspire many in Punjab,” said Ayali.