From missing big medals to nailing the bigger one — the Swapnil story Premium

Swapnil Kusale, an Olympic bronze medallist, remains humble and focused on his ultimate goal of winning a gold medal.

There is serenity about Swapnil Kusale. There is simplicity in his demeanour. For an Olympic medallist, he retains the pristine character and underplays his achievement. He reminds that an Olympic gold is the goal, underlining the point that the mission is on.

Swapnil showed the audacity to defy the odds, and the best in the world, to win a bronze in the 50-metre rifle 3-position in the Paris Olympics. His category is one of the toughest in the Olympic shooting programme as one has to master shooting in the kneeling, prone and standing positions. There are so many variables that need attention. Compared to 10-metre air rifle, the 50-metre rifle 3-position is complicated as a shooter has to fire at a target five times the distance.

The celebration was subtle and even as the interviewers tried hard to trigger some excitement in Swapnil, he came up with short and measured answers.

“Winning the gold is my dream and ultimate goal. The next step is to win an Olympic gold for India. The bronze is just one step closer to that. I learnt a lot during the Paris Games and will add that to my journey... keep working towards my destination,” said Swapnil, in a free-wheeling conversation.

There was no question of the celebrations and felicitations distracting him from the Go For Gold assignment. “I am trying to enjoy everything that is going around me,” he said.

While those following Indian shooting closely were aware of Swapnil’s ability to strike the best medals, the others did not have a hint as he had not won anything exceptional in the lead-up to Paris, except for the World Cup silver in Baku in 2022. In fact, Swapnil had become ‘famous’ for missing the big medals in the Cairo World Championships and Hangzhou Asian Games.

In October 2022 in Cairo, when he won the Olympic quota, Swapnil missed a medal narrowly (0.3 points) in a format different to the one in the Games. In the Asian Games the next year, Swapnil was gunning for gold before a 7.6 derailed him and finished outside the podium by a close margin (0.8 points).