Top shotgun shooters accuse national coach of partiality
Prominent India shotgun shooters Shagun Chowdhary, Angad Bajwa, among others have accused shotgun coach Mansher Singh training other shooters personally and favouring them openly. They also stated that they were not allowed to train outside the national camp despite having the required attendance.
Trap shooter Shagun Chowdhary and skeet shooter Angad Bajwa have been of the opinion that Singh’s conflict of interest has somewhat divided the team as the national coach has been singling out individuals who are not training under him.
35-year-old Chowdhary has been India’s only woman shotgun shooter to take part in Olympics (2012) while Bajwa has been India’s only skeet shooter to hold a world record in that discipline. While Chowdhary is training under former Italian world champion Daniele di Spigno, Bajwa is getting guidance from Beijing silver medallist Norwegian shooter-turned-coach Tore Brovold.
And Chowhdary has revealed that her national coach has always known about it and she has never disrespected him for him to have a problem with it. “Mansher is the national coach, and we respect him. I have attended the national camps and have more than the required 85% attendance. I have been training with my personal coach Daniele for over a year and he knows me better than anyone else,” said Chowdhary, reported TOI.
“I have never shown disrespect towards the national camps, neither have I brought my personal coach to the camps. But the national coach has a problem even if I train with Daniele outside the national camp,” added India’s no. 1 women's trap shooter.
Bajwa’s father Gurpal has been of the opinion that in a mentally important game like shooting, the negativity around the camp would be affecting the shooters' performances. “Angad has been training with Brovold for many years and owns the world-record, which was shot last year. I don't understand why the national coach should have a problem with Angad's personal coach. There is a lack of sensitivity in the camp. The coach doesn't understand the shooters well,” said Gurpal.
Gurpal also revealed how Singh stopped his son from going out of the country to train under his foreign coach in Cyprus. “Since Angad was depending on the TOPs funding, the ministry wanted the coach's approval. But Mansher rejected the proposal saying it will be too cold to train in Cyprus in January. The thing is, Brovold knows Angad well, he must have made the plan after considering many things.
“And since Mansher rejected the proposal, Angad didn't get the funding and the training could never happen even when there were no national camp scheduled during that time," Gurpal added.
Mansher Singh, on the other hand, has disapproved all allegations stating that he has been personally coaching the few shooters in the national team and has always given equal attention when it came to international events.
"When I became national coach, I had submitted a list of shooters who were training under me to the NRAI and Sports Authority of India. I don't agree with the charges that I favour shooters who train under me in personal capacity. I recuse myself from the selection duty if it concerns any shooter who trains under me. When I am with the team for national duty, I am only a national coach and not a personal coach to anyone," said Mansher.
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