National shooting coach Sunny Thomas on Friday said he was proud about Major Rathore's historic silver medal winning effort but was disappointed with the performance of other shooters.
National shooting coach Sunny Thomas on Friday said he was proud about Major Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore's historic silver medal winning effort but was disappointed with the performance of other shooters.
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"There is a sense of pride because of Rathore's silver medal effort but I thought some of the other shooters could have done better," Thomas told reporters after the Indian challenge ended with a whimper in women's Rifle 3 Position event.
"Overall I had expected a much better performance by the shooters and I am not completely satisfied," he said.
Of the eight Indian shooters who competed in the Olympics only three managed to make the final but the big disappointment was the performance of world no. 6 air rifle shooter Anjali Vedpathak Bhagwat.
Anjali, who went into the Olympics as a strong medal contender, ended a dismal 20th in 10m Air Rifle and finished 13th in Rifle 3 Position on Friday.
"I expected better results... But you cannot blame them because the competition out here is very tough," the Dronacharya awardee said.
Thomas said all the eight Indian shooters on view here were top class.
"We participated in five events and three went into the finals. It shows that we are closing the gap at the international level," he said.
Looking back at the Athens performance, Thomas said "a few mistakes here and there did not help us but it is a good experience for all of us."