Swapnil Kusale after winning bronze medal in Paris Olympics 2024.© AFP
Indian shooter Swapnil Kusale shone at 2024 Paris Olympics with a historic bronze medal in the Men's 50m rifle three positions event on Thursday. Spending much of the early parts of the final in the fifth or sixth position, Swapnil made a dash for the top to clinch the bronze medal. This became India's third shooting medal, as well as the third medal overall, in Paris 2024. "Jo India ke liye kar sakte hain, hamne sab kuch kiya (Whatever I could have done for India, I did)," Swapnil told NDTV in an exclusive interview on Thursday.
Kusale finished on 451.4 points, just 0.5 short of silver medalist Serhiy Kulish at the point of elimination. Kusale made a stunning comeback into the medal spots after languishing near the bottom for the majority of the event.
The 28-year-old from Kambalwadi in the Kohlapur district of Maharashtra became the sixth male shooter from India to win an Olympic medal. The Paris Olympics 2024 is also his maiden appearance at the Games.
Having finished seventh in the qualifying round, Kusale surprised everyone to claim an unprecedented medal. Kusale became the very first Indian to clinch a medal in the 50m rifle three positions event.
Swapnil Kusale draws inspiration from MS Dhoni as he too is a railway ticket collector like the cricket icon was early in his career.
The 29-year-old from Kambalwadi village near Kolhapur in Maharashtra has been competing in international events since 2012 but he had to wait another 12 years to make his Olympics debut at the Paris Games.
Being calm and patient are pre-requisites for a shooter and those two traits are also the hallmark of Dhoni's personality. It is therefore no surprise that Kusale relates to Dhoni's life story.