Double Olympic medalist Munkhbayar Dorjsuren to coach the Indian Pistol team
(Getty)
The NRAI selected two-time Olympic medalist Munkhbayar Dorjsuren as its foreign coach for the Indian national pistol shooting squad on Tuesday, with an eye on the Paris 2024 Olympics. Dorjsuren is likely to join Indian delegation for the ISSF World Cup, which begins on Saturday in Changwon, Korea.
Munkhbayar Dorjsuren, who finished third in Mongolia's 25m pistol event in 1992 and a bronze medal for Germany in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, will be instructing Indian shooters for the second time. The six-time Olympian previously coached Rahi Sarnobat, who won gold at the 2018 Asian Games.
“Munkhbayar has a wealth of experiences under her belt. We have given her a long-term contract, keeping in mind the next Olympic Games in 2024," NRAI secretary-general Kanwar Sultan Singh told PTI.
Dorjsuren, 52, will train with India's main instructors for 10m and 25m pistol competitions, Samaresh Jung and Ronak Pandit. Hiring such a high-profile pistol coach comes only days after the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) named Austrian Thomas Farnik as the foreign coach for rifle shooters. The Indian shotgun squad currently has great Australian shooter and former Olympic champion Russel Mark as its foreign coach.
“The NRAI has been following this pattern of having a foreign coach alongside two chief coaches across the three disciplines since 2002,” Joydeep Karmakar, one of the chief rifle coaches, said.
“That said, the decision to appoint top-quality foreign coaches and chief coaches this time will surely help the shooters to benefit immensely ahead of the next Olympic Games,” Karmakar added.
