For the regulars who are familiar with the general scenario of sports in Andhra Pradesh, the decision of ace shooter Gagan Narang to set up the Gun For Glory academy in Pune's Bhalewadi Sports Complex may not be a big surprise. By his own confession, Gagan submitted a detailed proposal to the State Government long ago, and also looked for decent sponsors from the corporate world to help him realise his own ultimate goal of winning the coveted gold in Olympics and also lend a helping hand to talented shooters in the process.
Not unexpectedly, the response was not there. But to his credit, this magnificent Hyderabadi shooter kept hitting the targets with remarkable ease, fighting one adversity after the other, in the process proving critics repeatedly wrong.
Former All-England champion Pullela Gopic Chand stands out as a example of a great sportsperson putting in place a truly world-class academy in the city. So, amidst this backdrop when Gagan finally took the plunge into setting up his academy, with NGO Lakshya coming forward to help him achieve his objective, he should know what he is gunning for. True to his nature, this world record-holder and a World Cup gold medallist believes that the time has come for someone like him to taking shooting to greater heights. “This is my small contribution in this effort,” was his modest remark.
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Gagan has his feet on the ground and says the academy is essentially targeting the 2016 Olympics for India to win more shooting medals. “We have both short-term and long-term coaching courses not just for shooters but also for coaches too,” says the first Indian to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics.
Gagan picked Indian shooting team's assistant coach Pawan Singh as administrator and international Ronak Pandit as the consulting director at the academy. The academy has foreign coaches, a sports injury management team, physiotherapist, foreign armourer, yoga guru, dietician, masseur, a gun testing facility, and a psychologist.