Mumbai, July 6 (IANS) When they line up for their respective events in the Paris Olympic Games, India’s top rifle shooters like Sandeep Singh, Ashwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Swapnil Kusale, Elavenil Valarivan, Ramita Thapar, Sift Kaur Samra, and Anjum Moudgil will be banking on their newly-acquired skills of mental warm-up to help them to climb onto the podium.

“Mental warm-up”, is a technique to calm their mind and steel nerves, that the shooters have added to their armour in the last three years since they failed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics when an ultra-strong Indian shooting contingent had returned home empty-handed.

In shooting every breath counts. So, if a shooter exhales a millisecond here or there while about to pull the trigger, it will have an impact on his shot, the aim could be off and the shooter may drop crucial points.

“So it’s really about how each of my young athletes is able to have a command and control over every single breath that they’re going to breathe on that day (when they shooting in the final). Because even one breath, if you exhale one second later than usual, is going to cost you a decimal point. And one breath that you exhale earlier can also cost you your point,” says chief national rifle coach Suma Shirur.

Shooting is a mental sport and therefore besides the latest high-class rifle, a shooter requires tremendous focus, a high level of concentration during tournaments, and the ability to control one’s breath and muscles to achieve pin-point accuracy in tough competitions.

It was shortcomings in these mental aspects of the sport that were considered among the reasons for the Indian shooters’ failure to win medals in the 2016 and 2020 Tokyo Games despite a large number of stars earning the quotas.

“So going forward, I think the biggest effort is of the mind and we are really, really focused on that. And with our expert team in place, this is the main stress that we are going to stress mainly on this because all the work, all the other work I can say is kind of done with now it’s only about repetition, repetition, repetition and repeating what they already know, but at the same time, finding tools and developing tactics where they’re able to keep their mind in the present moment,” said Shirur during a panel discussion on India’s chances at the Paris Olympic Games, organized by the Sports Journalists Association a few days back.

Thus in the last three years, the Indian shooters, as per a special programme set in place by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) have worked on the mental aspect of the sport, with the expert coaches introducing “mental warm-up” for the shooters, which they believe will help them climb the podium in Paris.

“So a good physical warm up is what they’ve always been doing. But this time our team has also introduced a good mental warm-up and something that they added, which everyone is doing, and mindfulness meditation. Young kids never like to do it, so, but this is something that has been introduced and each one is into the process,” she added.

Shooting is the second-most successful sport after hockey for India at the Olympics. While India had ruled hockey competitions at the Olympics, winning eight gold medals, one silver, and two bronze medals, the shooters, thanks to Abhinav Bindra’s historic first individual gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, have bagged four medals in all — 1 gold, two silver, and one bronze. Shooting besides hockey and athletics is the only sport in which India has won a gold medal at the Olympics.

In Paris, a 21-member team of shooters will be representing India. The team comprises eight members in Rifle, seven in Pistol, and six in the Shotgun discipline. Including the mixed events, the team will have 28 starts at the quadrennial sporting extravaganza. The team was selected after four grueling rounds of tough trials involving the most talented shooters besides the quota winners in each category.

The entire shooting community has high hopes for this contingent, which has made the country proud in various competitions including the various World Cups and World Championships besides the Asian Games in the last three years.

“So we’ve shooters who have shown their skills over the last three years where we’ve been winning consistently major competitions, and the biggest test for each one of them was during selection trials. And they have come out successful, they’ve all done their best,” said Shirur.

The top shooters of the country have prepared extensively over the last three years, constantly testing themselves in competitions and working out on various aspects of the sports with the experts.

Besides that, the NRAI has last month organised a camp in France, very near the place where the shooting competitions will be held in Paris. They will again be reaching France well before time so that the shooters can get acclimatised to the conditions.

So, the shooters have also worked on managing things on their own when at the shooting station, whether in competition or practice.

“At the end of the day, on that day, the athlete is there all along. And so our effort has been in not making dependent athletes.

“Our effort has been in making them independent so that they can stand out there taking responsibility in their hands and go out there and make those bold decisions and be able to stand tall no matter what the situation is and come out of the that’s what the effort has been. And I’m quite sure that each one will make us proud. Whether we win a medal or not,” said Shirur.

Having spent a few days near the venue, the shooters have a fair idea of what to expect in terms of climate and conditions and in terms of competition too. The shooters are now in a phase in which they can visualize the conditions and competitions in Paris and prepare their minds for the competitions.

Though Shirur said she would not like to comment on the medals that the shooters would win in the Paris Olympics, she was confident that each of them would give their best during the Olympics.

“Today I really can proudly say that we are far ahead technically in terms of the process than what we were four years ago. We work diligently on every detail. And today I can say that they are all working. They are one of the best in the world, and I feel so proud. Now I don’t have to talk about one or two champions. Each one of them is a champion in their own right, and they can win,” she said.

Now that the members of the Indian contingent have prepared well, and have the best equipment and pallets, it now comes down to what the shooter does at the shooting station, how he handles the stress and pressure of a top-level competition.

–IANS

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Berlin, July 6 (IANS) France progress on penalties after converting all five shots from the spot to eliminate Portugal 5-3 (0-0) in the Euro 2024 quarterfinals of in Hamburg’s Volkspark stadium on Friday.

France and Portugal staged an evenly balanced first half with chances at premium on both ends of the pitch.

The first half chances fell to Portugal with 16 minutes played, when Bruno Fernandes saw his promising effort on target blocked by defender William Saliba.

France created the best opportunity of the first half four minutes later when Theo Hernandez’ attempt from the distance to force Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa into action.

After the half-time, Portugal took the reins and came close at the hour mark after Joao Cancelo’s through ball found Fernandes, whose drilled effort is saved by Les Bleus custodian Mike Maignan.

Maignan remained busy as he was equal to Vitinhia’s powerful but central shot on target moments later.

France almost caught Portugal flat-footed in the 66th minute, but Ruben Dias blocked Randal Kolo Muani’s shot in the last nick of time.

Didier Deschamps’ men had more momentum in the closing stages but Eduardo Camavinga and Ousmane Dembele couldn’t turn their promising chances into a tangible reward.

In the overtime, Portugal was the more active team whereas France defended deep and waited for counterattacks. Joao Felix had the golden chance to snatch a late overtime winner, but he headed into the side netting from tight angle.

After goalless 120 minutes, the penalty shootout had to bring the decision. After two successful penalties for both sides, Felix missed and hit the left post with low shot. Hernandez clinched the win for France after making it 5-3 from the spot.

“It wasn’t easy today. We made our own life difficult, but we defended very well and kept a strong opponent at bay. We were not nervous during the shootout and won the match,” said France goalkeeper Maignan.

With the result, France will clash with Spain in the semifinal the at Munich’s Allianz Arena on Tuesday.

–IANS

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Berlin, July 6 (IANS) Mikel Merino’s 119th minute winner sent tournament host Germany packing and booked Spain a semifinal ticket at the Euro 2024 in Stuttgart’s MHP-Arena on Friday.

The two sides drew 1-1 in regular time and the match was dragged into overtime where Olmo’s pinpoint cross to the near post allowed Merino to nod home the decisive goal, reported Xinhua.

Both sides needed some time to gain a foothold into the clash, as many fouls disrupted the flow of the game.

Spain assumed control as the match progressed and created chances through long-range efforts. However, Nico Williams and Fabian Ruiz lacked in accuracy while Lamine Yamal pulled a free-kick just wide.

Germany remained on the back foot but Aymeric Laporte as well as Dani Olmo couldn’t overcome goalkeeper Manuel Neuer from the distance.

Kai Havertz produced Germany’s first clear-cut opportunity in the closing stage of the first half after forcing Spain custodian Simon Unai into action.

Spain started brightly into the second half as Alvaro Morata missed the target with a turn shot from inside the box, before Olmo eventually broke the deadlock in the 51st minute when the Leipzig player finished off Yamal’s low pass with one-timer from 14 meters into the bottom left corner.

Julian Nagelsmann’s boys tried to respond quickly but either the final pass was missing, or Spain’s defense cleared the ball in the last nick of time.

The Germans increased the pressure as Simon had defuse Robert Andrich’s shot on target before Niclas Fullkrug smacked the woodwork.

Havertz should have leveled the scores but chipped the ball over the empty target from 22 meters.

Spain couldn’t get out of their territory and was punished later on as Joshua Kimmich headed from tight angle into the path of Florian Wirtz, who slotted home the equalizer with great assistance of the inside the left post to force La Roja into the overtime.

“Congratulations to Spain for reaching the semifinals. We were better in the second half and from the 60th minute onwards, we were clearly the better team. Our late leveller was well-deserved. We conceded the winner with the last chance. It is a painful one,” said Germany coach Nagelsmann.

–IANS

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London, July 6 (IANS) American second seed Coco Gauff eased past British qualifier Sonay Kartal 6-5, 6-0 on a packed No.1 Court while former US Open winner and wild card Emma Raducanu maintained her chances by stunning ninth seed Maria Sakkari in straight sets to reach the fourth round of women’s singles at the Wimbledon here on Friday.

The World No. 298 Kartal had walked out confidently onto the court on Friday, as only the second British woman in the Open Era to reach the third after coming through Qualifying. He might have been hoping to emulate Gauff, who had at this same court caused a sensation as a 15-year-old in 2019 when she stunned five-time champion Venus Williams.

But Kartal’s journey ended in just over an hour as Gauff raced past her, losing only four games in all.

As rain pattered on the closed No.1 Court roof, Gauff emerged easy victor to reach the second week and equal what remains her best performance here to date. The US Open champion will need to get past her fast-rising compatriot Emma Navarro in the next round if she has to extend her stay here.

While Gauff was getting the better of a local star, another one rose to the occasion and defeated a seeded player to reach the fourth round. Raducanu commandingly booked British representation in the second week of Wimbledon with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over No.9 seed Maria Sakkari.

Under a closed roof on Centre Court, 2021 US Open champion Raducanu thrilled her home crowds by toppling ninth-ranked Sakkari in 1 hour and 32 minutes of play.

Currently ranked World No.135, Raducanu is maintaining a strong stretch of form during the grass-court swing — a portion of the year she missed in 2023 while recovering from injuries and surgeries.

Raducanu made her first semifinal of the year on the lawns of Nottingham, then backed it up by beating top-10 player Jessica Pegula to reach the Eastbourne quarterfinals.

Former World No.10 Raducanu is now into the Wimbledon second week for the first time since she reached the Round of 16 upon her main-draw debut in 2021 — the Slam preceding her historic US Open title run.

–IANS

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London, July 6 (IANS) Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz improved to a 12-1, his overall record in five-set encounters in majors as he got the better of American Frances Tiafoe in a thrilling encounter in men’s singles third round at the Wimbledon 2024 on Friday. The 21-year-old Spaniard survived a major scare as he rallied from the brink against Tiafoe to win a third-round thriller 5-7, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-2.

Under the roof on Centre Court, both produced moments of magic, engaging in extended cat-and-mouse rallies throughout the match. With little to separate them, Alcaraz raised the tempo and power of his groundstrokes in the closing stages to seal victory in three hours and 51 minutes, improving to 12-1 in fifth sets at majors.

Alcaraz has won his past 10 matches at The Championships, having defeated Novak Djokovic in the final last year. However, the third seed’s title hopes hung in the balance for large periods on Friday afternoon when Tiafoe produced one of his best performances of the season to push the Spaniard to his limit.

The American arrived for Wimbledon having won consecutive matches at just two tour-level events this year — Delray Beach and Houston). However, he looked back at the level that helped him reach the semi-finals in New York in 2022 and win two tour-level titles in 2023, demonstrating great court craft to pull the World No. 3 around.

He could not quite maintain his level in the fifth set against Alcaraz, who let out a roar and raised his arms to the sky after his absorbing win. Into the fourth round at SW19 for the third consecutive year, Alcaraz will next face Frenchman Ugo Humbert or American Brandon Nakashima.

The Spaniard is chasing his third trophy of the season and fourth major title overall. Last month, he triumphed at Roland Garros to become the youngest man in history to win a major on all three surfaces.

In other matches on Friday, 10th seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria defeated French veteran Gael Monfils 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 while the 12th seed Tommy Paul of the United States sent 23rd seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in another third round encounter.

–IANS

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