Asher Noria, who re-asserted his growing stature in the big league with a stunning gold in the juniors category of the double-trap event of the World championship in Munich last week, says that it is his best-ever performance. "The most satisfying performance in the most demanding of conditions," he asserted.
The 17-year-old shooter, who arrived back home in Hyderabad on Saturday, informed ‘ The Hindu ’ that he considers gold an amazing result, given the World championship is thought to be the hardest competition after the Olympics. He was third time lucky in the World championship, having finished seventh in the 2007 edition and 12th in the 2009 event.
Asher claimed his third gold in a world-level event after successfully defending his Junior World Cup gold early this year. In the process of winning the Munich gold last week, he equalled Maltese William Chetcuti’s six-year-old world junior record of 146/150.
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"Honestly, I did not think of any score when I was shooting, but when I had 98 out of 100, then I realised that I was closer to the world record," the young shooter pointed out.
"The preparations were really hard and good. I was just hoping that everything will fall in place when it mattered on the given day. I am happy it just happened the way I would have loved to," he exclaimed.
Asher, who will head to the U.S. to pursue higher studies, dedicates the World championship gold to his mentor Ronjan Singh Sodhi, his foreign coach and to his entire family. "They have been a great source of inspiration for me and I continue to look to them for winning more laurels," he added.
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"The conditions kept changing from sunny to cold weather. They were really challenging because of the unpredictability factor," Asher said to a query.
What next? "Well, the Indian squad for the Commonwealth Games is not yet picked. If selected, I hope to win another gold," the sensational shooter from Hyderabad remarked.