My focus will be to make our shooters mentally strong: Karmakar

New National rifle coach wants to prepare a good team for Paris Games

The newly appointed chief rifle coach of India, Joydeep Karmakar, feels the country’s rifle shooters need to be mentally strong to produce their best during big events like the Olympics.

Karmakar, who missed the bronze by a whisker in the men’s 50m rifle prone event at the 2012 London Olympics, said that he will be focusing on the mental strength of his wards when he assumes his new role.

“After reading reports appearing in the media, I found that our shooters are failing in the big arena apparently because they are unable to handle pressure. It is also possible that most of them are unable to peak at the right time,” said Karmakar during a meet-the-press organised by the Calcutta Sports Journalists Club.

The Olympian, who has been running an academy in the city, said that he has been given a contract till 2025 and would like to prepare a good team for the 2024 Paris Games.

“I did not formally announce my retirement from the sport. But after receiving the confirmation of my appointment as the chief coach from the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), I have decided to bring the curtain down on my career as a shooter,” said Karmakar, adding that he will be joining the National camp ahead of the World Cup scheduled in Baku from May 25. 

Relating to his experience as a shooter, Karmakar said he will be able to do justice to his new role as he encountered a lot of hardships before making it to the Olympics final.

“I feel I will be doing a better job in my new role as I personally didn’t have a coach ever since I started my career in 1989. I had to learn and unlearn many times from different experiences to reach my level of excellence,” Karmakar said.