Usain Bolt inspires pistol shooter Gauri Sheoran

Love travelling, and shooting gives me an opportunity for that as well,” says pistol shooter Gauri Sheoran, who had “a great start to the year” courtesy a recent silver (team) medal in the 10m air pistol event in the Inter-Shoot Airgun International Shooting Championship, at The Hague (Netherlands).

The shooter, who made a name for herself after winning gold in shooting at the 7th World University Shooting Championship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2018, recently participated in the International Shooting Competition of Hannover, Germany.

The sportsperson looks to Usain Bolt, the fastest man in the world, for inspiration. “I really look up to Usain Bolt. The way he is, the way he wins. I read his book, and was inspired.” But she adds, “I am not a book lover. There are only a few autobiographies of sportspersons that I have read—Abhinav Bindra and Usain Bolt. I’ve started reading Andre Agassi. I like to read once in a while,” says the 21-year-old Haryana-born shooter.

When Gauri picked up her brother’s rifle at the age of 11, little did she know it would lead her to choose the sport professionally. “Back then, the pistol was too heavy for me (laughs). My elder brother (Vishwajeet Singh) began shooting before me. I tried the pistol for the first time and I really liked it,” says Gauri.

“It was fun in the beginning. For the first few years, I would practise 10 days before the competition. After a while, [when] I started getting state medals, it made me realise I wanted to take it up as a profession,” she says.

The shooter, who divides her time between Chandigarh and Gurugram, is a fashionista in real life and her social media account is a testament to that. “Only guns, no roses,” she has captioned a picture on Instagram, where she also posts pictures from her workout routines.

Gauri, who trains at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting range five days a week, believes fitness and technical accuracy are the key to her success. “I started [my journey into] fitness three years ago. Ever since, it’s been my passion. Once you reach your goal, you’re like ‘I wanna get fitter’. And, with fashion too, [the interest began] started four years ago. I was a tomboy (laughs). I would really want to study fashion as well in future,” she shares.

Gauri is happy to see pistol shooting become popular with the youth. “Pistol shooting is one of the top sports in India. A lot of athletes have been getting laurels at global podiums. A lot of young people are fascinated by it,” she says.

Mention how winning gold is the only goal of a sportsperson and the shooter is unperturbed. “There hasn’t been any pressure on me from family. It is one of the things that has really inspired me. They tell me to give my best,” she adds.