Shooting World Cup: Indian shooters have ‘home advantage’ to seal Olympic quota spot - Sanjeev Rajput

Commonwealth Games gold medallist Sanjeev Rajput believes that with the 2019 Shooting World Cup being held in India, shooters have got a “big home advantage” to grab the 2020 Tokyo Olympics quota spots.

There are 16 Olympic quota spots that are up for grabs, the competition for which will start from the Shooting World Cup that commences Wednesday.

“Quota competitions are going to start this year with the World Cup. In such scenario, if the Shooting World Cup is being held in India, then it is a big advantage for us. When we go out for competition, our schedule and timing gets disturbed. But here, we are training in home conditions and home range, which is a big advantage,” Sanjeev told ANI.

The 2018 Asian Games silver medallist also backed the idea of giving more facilities to the younger generation of shooters so that they can perform well in international competitions.

When asked to comment on the deadly terror attack in Pulwama in which 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives, Sanjeev, a soldier himself, opined “It is due to our soldiers that we live our lives peacefully. I believe that being a soldier is a matter of pride and we support you.”

The shooting World Cup, which officially started today, will conclude on February 28 in New Delhi.