Top stars for Lakshya Cup shooting

Top air rifle shooters, including national champions, compete

Some of the best air rifle shooters, including newly crowned National champions Shahu Mane and Ananay Naidu, will be in action in the 15th Lakshya Cup, to be hosted at Karnala Sports Academy in Panvel on January 4 and 5.

Former world No. 1 Divyansh Singh Panwar, and two other Olympians Arjun Babuta and Sandeep Singh, will be part of the competition, which was started in 2008 by Olympic finalist and world record holder Suma Shirur, who has the distinction of winning the Arjuna and Dronacharya Awards for her rich contribution to shooting.

“We aim to recognise talent, reward excellence and provide a platform for shooters to showcase their skills at the highest level. This tournament is not just a competition, but a celebration of hard work, dedication and the spirit of sportsmanship,” said Lakshya Club’s High Performance Director Suma on Thursday.

“We value Lakshya Club’s contribution to Indian sport. We remain committed to supporting the growth of Indian sport,” said the Managing Director of RR Global, a company that has been supporting the competition since 2017.

Gender equality was first introduced in this competition right from the inaugural edition, with men and women shooting same number of shots, an idea that was eventually adopted by the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) in 2017.

The field will have some of the past champions and others with rich international achievements, including Rudrankksh Patil, Shriyanka Sadnagi, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Kiran Jadhav, Hriday Hazarika, Ashi Chouksey, Deepak Kumar and Meghana Sajjanar.

After the qualification process on the first day, the finals of juniors will be held at 2 p.m. and the seniors at 3.30 p.m. on Sunday (January 5).