NRAI, coaches

Jaspal Rana.
| Photo Credit: File Photo: RITU RAJ KONWAR

A coach of exceptional ability, Dronacharya awardee Jaspal Rana, returns to the coaching panel of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) as the High Performance Coach for pistol, in a long list of coaching experts ratified by the Governing Body of the NRAI on Saturday.

Multiple Asian Games gold medallist and the face of Indian shooting for a long spell, Rana was instrumental in guiding Manu Bhaker to two Olympic medals in Paris. He had earlier served as the National coach for the juniors for about a decade, building a strong base for Indian shooting with his eye for discipline and focus on a sound process.

Ronak Pandit continues as the High Performance Manager for pistol while Samaresh Jung continues as the head coach.

Deepali Deshpande.
| Photo Credit:
File Photo

Another Dronacharya awardee, rifle coach Deepali Deshpande, returns to the coaching panel as the head coach. She was instrumental in guiding half a dozen shooters both men and women to win the Olympic quota in the last cycle, out of which Swapnil Kusale went on to bag the rifle 3-position bronze in Paris.

In rifle, Manoj Kumar will continue as the High Performance Coach.

In shotgun, Mansher Singh will be High Performance Manager and Anwer Sultan, the High Performance Coach. Vikram Chopra has been doing commendable work as the head coach.

Jitu Rai, Pooja Ghatkar, Om Prakash, Sonia Rai, Deepak Dubey, Varsha Tomar and Amrinder Singh Cheema are some of the prominent names among others joining the coaching staff of NRAI.

There is no mention of the appointment of foreign coaches as yet. The NRAI also took firm steps forward to start the Shooting League of India (SLI).