In an exclusive conversation with Oneindia's Kangkan Mahanta, Indian shooter Anjum Moudgil opens up about her journey in the world of shooting and the mental fortitude required to excel at the highest levels, including the upcoming Paris Olympics. She shares insights into the importance of emotional control, the role of strength and conditioning in preventing injuries, and how India's shooting landscape has evolved with the availability of more ranges and facilities.
#AnjumMoudgil #Shooting #Olympics #ParisOlympics2024 #MentalStrength #IndianShooting #GoSportsFoundation #Paris2024 #ShootingSuccess #AthleteInterview #SportsMentality #Inspiration
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#AnjumMoudgil #Shooting #Olympics #ParisOlympics2024 #MentalStrength #IndianShooting #GoSportsFoundation #Paris2024 #ShootingSuccess #AthleteInterview #SportsMentality #Inspiration
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NewsTranscript
00:00Hello a very warm welcome to all the viewers of my KLN1 India. I'm your host today Konkan Mohanta
00:07and today we have with us one of the stalwarts of shooting in India, a former world number one in
00:13the 50 meter three positions rifle, a former world number two in 10 meter rifle, two times
00:20silver medalist at the world championship, gold medalist at the commonwealth games, multiple times
00:26medalist at the commonwealth games shooting championships and also recently she represented
00:32India at the Paris Olympics. Thank you so much for coming in Anjum Motgil. Thank you so much.
00:36Such an honor and privilege to have you with us. Thank you so much. I'm really excited to
00:41you know interact with you. Thank you. Yeah so I mean the Paris Olympics is still
00:48kind of fresh in our memory still and you have been part of a contingent which again you know
00:54made us proud in terms of winning medal. So how has been your experience overall because stakes
01:00were very high because we expected medals as usual from the shooting team and how was the
01:06overall experience you know the pressure, the joy of representing the country again. In fact it's
01:11your second Olympics so just take us through your journey. Surely Paris Olympics was very different
01:18if I compare it with Tokyo because you know qualifying for Tokyo took me like I qualified
01:25for Tokyo three years prior to the game and then the games were postponed so there was a lot of
01:31ifs and buts going into Tokyo Olympics and also there was you know so many different covid tests
01:40done. You never know you know you come out positive and you miss out on your game so there was
01:44a lot of uncertainty but you know going into Paris was a I would say a dream after Tokyo and
01:54I still remember you know as soon as I came back from Tokyo all I wanted was to
01:59be there in Paris. I think the next time I'll be thinking about winning in the next year.
02:04This time I was just wanted to go to Paris, did not have that winning in mind and it
02:11changed later but yeah Paris was fun. It was a very different games for shooting because we
02:17were not staying in the games village. We were three hours away from the main city and but I
02:24would say if I see shooting performance there was a lot of I would say a good pressure on shooting
02:32sport because you know last two Olympics we did not win any medal and you know and also the media
02:38is covering shooting now so well so you always want to you know prove everyone that okay our
02:45sport is something that does good in all the other competitions but in shooting in the Olympics can
02:51also do well and I'm so happy that three of our shooters won medals and it was just like a relief
03:01for us especially for the shooters who were there in Tokyo because once we came back it was
03:07consecutively second Olympics of not winning medals and there was a lot of backlash a lot of
03:13negative comments happening through media from people around and different places but I think
03:21that's why it took many of the shooters who were there in Tokyo really couldn't recover from that
03:27phase and but I was happy that a couple of us was were there in Paris and one of us who was
03:35there in Tokyo and Paris won the medal so yeah I'm really glad that shooting won the maximum
03:42medals in Paris Olympics and I'm part of such an amazing sport and I'll continue to
03:49work harder to you know bring laurels to the country. Sure you will why not yeah so now that
03:56this happened to be a second Olympics after Tokyo so I guess the nerves kind of settled down a
04:02little bit because Tokyo was the first experience Covid time you know so I think by now you're kind
04:07of more experienced in terms of handling pressure because Olympics is no smaller environment right?
04:14Yes of course I just you know as a beginner I was always excited to know how you know the
04:21players who are preparing for Olympics how do they you know control their nerves how do they feel
04:27one night prior to the event how do they sleep but once I was in Tokyo I was very excited to
04:33experience the same the caution that I had for many years but I was so happy to have a good sleep
04:39because I know I knew that you know everything that is required I have done that and there's
04:45nothing new I should do now just follow my routine and I was able to have a good sleep and do
04:51you know a good preparation in terms of my match and yeah and same in Paris I think I had
05:02set a routine I was practicing that and I was very happy that mentally and physically I was so much
05:08in control there was no high pressure even if there was a bit of high heartbeat the pulse was
05:14higher I knew how to get it down through different exercises I had been doing from last couple of
05:20years so I was very much prepared and I was very happy I could see myself there you know being very
05:28calm at an Olympic event shooting my best and also you know in between I lost couple of points
05:35in my match in prone position but then getting back stronger and finishing the match so I think
05:42it was like a roller coaster starting well going down ending well but I think
05:49yeah handling pressure I tested myself during the Olympic trials that happened in India that was one
05:56of the most difficult events I would say for me to actually make it to the Olympic team because
06:02I did not win the quota and I was not really doing well last year so getting back there was a task and
06:09I was extremely happy to be part of the team by you know doing good in the selection trials
06:15so I tested myself in those trials rather than in the Olympics true sure now talking about nerves
06:22I mean unlike sports like tennis or volleyball you know we see athletes fist thumping I mean
06:30chest thumping and fist pumping sorry and in between winning points but I guess shooting is a
06:35total different ball game right I mean between rounds you just can't be doing that even even
06:40though your adrenaline might be on a high so I think it's a totally different ball game when it
06:46comes to shooting and archery when it comes to calming your nerves throughout the match no matter
06:50how good you are doing right and how do we approach yes of course yes yeah I think the biggest thing
06:57that I have learned through shooting sport is having control on my mind and body I think none
07:04no other thing in the world really teaches you that unless you play a sport or something that
07:08you do with your body so I'm really glad I am in this field where I've had that control on my
07:14emotions and particularly in shooting I think we are such so calm and patient most of the time when
07:22we are shooting that we really can't show our emotions outside you know even if you're very
07:27aggressive you are not liking something you're just hating it or you're just not loving the way
07:33you shoot you have to be very calm and if you're really excited you're shooting amazing and then
07:39you are so happy that everything is going there again you have to be really really calm so I think
07:45it's all and I think that is the reason why people consider shooting a little bit boring because
07:51there's no expression on our faces and that has become a habit that even when we are in normal
07:57life our face looks like a very straight face and people are really scared of us
08:03but at the same time I think it's such an amazing sport that challenges you mentally so much that
08:11in life it has really helped me to handle my emotions. Very interesting point that you made
08:16because you all practice so much and you know day in and day out and with that kind of demeanor that
08:23you have that you need to have you know the exterior self or whatever you know trying to
08:27calm your nerves throughout so meaning which when you are 60 to 70 percent of your time like that so
08:33obviously that becomes like a habit as a process even in your real life right I mean so I guess
08:40shooters in real life by nature are cool and calm people. Not mostly but some of us are some are very
08:48outgoing and happy but I mean while shooting they can really have good control but it's not
08:55something that is really mandatory to start shooting it's something that can really help
09:00you if you already have you know if you're already a calmer person it might just help you
09:05a bit more but if you have that good control even if you're outgoing and extrovert and you know
09:11not that calm you can always do that while playing so that's not the I mean basics that
09:19are required. Talking about now of course skill and the mental aspect matters so much in shooting
09:27but I guess the physical aspect is also so much underrated for the typical audience who do not
09:32know that there are a lot of injuries that happen in shooting right because day in and day out when
09:37you have to you know shoot from a rifle that is as heavy as a rifle you know and that too over so
09:42many rounds and practices trainings so I guess a lot of back pain shoulder you know issues stuff
09:48like that so in that case I think shooters also go through a lot of strength and conditioning
09:53which a lot of us may not know as to what goes behind into making a shooter you know it's not
09:58only about a skill and the mental aspect but also I guess a lot to do with physical aspect also right
10:03yes of course I mean when I started there was this you know a myth around that you should not
10:10really train in the gym or pick weights because it will you know your muscles will be bulky and
10:17then you might not have that good stability and all but for many years some of us believed it
10:23but you know once I had an injury in my shoulder where I was not really able to lift my arm and
10:30also a lower back injury because we are in a posture standing for a long time where it really
10:36hurts if you do not strengthen your back and we have in our prone position there is a lot of
10:43pressure on the shoulder and we have to train for a couple of hours so it's like keeping one muscle
10:51under pressure for a long time so it really breaks it down and some if you are weak if your muscles
10:57are weak you might injure yourself so when I got an injury back in 2013 that's when I actually
11:05started working on my physical health through therabands so someone suggested to get a surgery
11:10but I was like no let me just work on myself and I was young I was very young so I just started out
11:18working with the athletes in Chandigarh with athletic coach so I used to you know be there in
11:25the grounds at 4 a.m and you do sprinting and a lot of running and then a lot of theraband
11:31exercises for strengthening and a lot of tennis and I think that really helped me to strengthen
11:38my muscles and that's where my fitness journey started and I have made sure that I continue doing
11:45it and then now we have seen a drastic change through help of you know many physical trainers
11:51who are there with the team and also many seniors who have really understood how important gym
11:59and you know this training physical training is be it in the gym or outdoors so now I think
12:06they're mostly around you know 90% shooters do train for many hours for physical training based
12:15on stability, balancing and endurance where we have to stand for a long time and then
12:22each and every muscles needs to be strengthened so yeah we have to really break it down to
12:28minute muscles and work on them. Oh my god shooting has evolved so much right over the years
12:35yes it surely has. Now talking about the I mean Indian shooters it's kind of legendary you know
12:42I mean right from Gagan Narang to Avinar Bindra to Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore and Vijay Kumar
12:53and to now Manu Bakar and you all I mean the list will go on I'm so sorry I missed out so many of
12:59them you know yes so what is I mean what is that one thing that really clicked you know at some
13:06point of time that really made India what we are today in terms of shooting you know because whenever
13:11there is the Olympics whenever the Asian games shooting is the first discipline that okay we'll
13:17afford okay shooters to hang you know that kind of a mindset that we have so what do you think
13:23really worked well for us all of a sudden you know that we are currently in this such a healthy
13:28position. I think firstly Rajyavardhan Singh sir's medal but Abhinav Bhaiya's gold medal really
13:37changed the face of shooting everyone knew what shooting was everyone knew who Abhinav Bindra was
13:45so I think because of him we were really able to make people like tell people that okay this is
13:51the sport we play because when I started way back in 2007-2008 many people didn't know what
13:59shooting was they thought we are going for a camera shooting or something like that
14:03but telling people that we are going for the same sport what Abhinav Bindra plays I think
14:08it made us so so easy for us but I think that is one milestone for the Indian shooting that
14:15changed the face of the shooting sport in India and after that I think medals by Gagan Bhaiya,
14:23Vijay Kumar and you know all these medals have really changed the way people look to the
14:30shooters in the Olympics and obviously we could get good recognition in the Commonwealth Games
14:36and the Asian Games so that is something that is always there because people I don't know but in
14:42India you know people consider those games much more than the Indian like the World Shooting
14:47Championship because for us the World Championships are much more important but I think for some
14:54sports India just considers only the Asian Games, Commonwealth and the Olympics as the most
15:00important events. So I think Abhinav Bindra's medal was a changing point for Indian shooting and
15:08now you know after Tokyo everything everyone was talking about shooting and all that you know the
15:16people are winning in all the other competitions but the shooters are not winning in Olympics so
15:20it was a different story but all thanks to Manu, Sarabjot and Swapnil for changing that script and
15:27now there is a very positive noise around the shooting fraternity and people who want to start
15:34the sport. Great, sure and I mean you also have been associated with the Go Sports Foundation
15:45quite a long time, sorry I also missed out a little bit in this just in connection to what
15:50you said about shooting. So I guess a lot of us would have started our first shooting with
15:56NCC right which I guess is a little bit underrated at times because it's during NCC
16:02time that you know a lot of people would have held their first rifle right so I think those
16:08kind of grassroot things would also have helped shooting over a long period of time things like
16:12NCC stuff like that you know. Yeah earlier you know only the forces had the weapons and
16:19ammunition because no one else had that money to get that money to import the weapons so
16:26NCC has really helped me. I mean I think I'm here just because of NCC because my mother introduced
16:34my mother introduced me to shooting just because she was part of shooting sport through NCC
16:39so I think that is the reason I'm here today and also my coach Dipali Deshpande she was an NCC cadet
16:46Anjali Bhagwadidhi was an NCC cadet, Suma Shidur, I think all of them have really
16:51come up because of NCC and I can't really think about anyone else from that time who has started
16:59on their own so NCC has played a major role in the people who are there in this sport today
17:06and also the forces have really helped you know way back in couple of years they were only the
17:11forces who were doing great because they had funds to you know purchase the weapons and ammunition
17:17so only because of these forces and NCC paramilitary forces as well CISF BSF they
17:25also have a couple of teams so I think it was only them but now because shooting has been now
17:32it's vastly spread across different cities and villages in India each and every village in
17:39please in Haryana, UP and you know many other places everyone can go to a shooting range just
17:46like a 10 minutes or an half an hour drive so I think it's the change we have seen and
17:52yeah so now I would say people can really do shooting without the help of the forces but
17:59if I see it like seven to eight years ago it was very difficult to start on your own.
18:06That's great news that you know it has become so very accessible even to a general mass
18:12in general because that really creates an ecosystem right it's not only about winning
18:15medals but creating an ecosystem in itself is what is so important in creating the champions
18:20in the long run right yeah yeah of course yes now down the line of course I think Go
18:26Sports Foundation also had helped you a lot in your career and so can you tell us a little bit
18:32about your association in Go Sports as how it really helped you in nurturing your career in
18:38the long in the long run yeah I was selected in Go Sports I think way back in 2013-14
18:48or I think 12-13 and that was when I was still a junior and not really I didn't really win
18:55too many medals at the international level but I was somewhere there at the top and they just
19:01selected me and I have been with them and that they were the reasons I was able to buy my own
19:06weapons because earlier for five to six years with the NCC I was only shooting with the weapon
19:14that was shared among like five to six shooters one kit was shared among three four shooters so
19:20I was just using that and doing well and then also playing some internationals
19:27but only because of Go Sports I was actually able to buy my own weapon because
19:32it's really required when you want to do better and you know go into that precision so I'm
19:39and I can never be thankful enough to Go Sports because they are with me since then and now still
19:46they are with me and there have been so many ups and lows and I cannot imagine anyone helping us
19:52through the lows as much you know there's so many people around when you're doing good but very few
19:59are there to support you when you're not doing good and I think apart from Go Sports there's
20:04no other federation I can think who can or a foundation I can think who are always there
20:09through your lows even the low if it's for one or two years they're still there so I think I'm
20:15just so so I feel so proud to be part of their family and it's been around 12 years now
20:22I just boost about it that I'm part of the Go Sports family and
20:25all the equipment travel expenditure everything is done through them
20:31wow that's a great association yeah right so now you actually got two disciplines
20:38mostly 50 meter three positions and 10 meter rifle so how do you actually manage both the
20:44things because this time you of course represented in terms of 50 meter you know a rifle before that
20:50you were also very much part of the 10 meter rifle so how do you actually decide as to more in
20:54decision how is that you divide your time between these two discipline you know because these two
20:59disciplines are totally different because one is three 50 meter position where you've got three
21:04different positions right prone knee and then standing so how do you actually divide your time
21:11between these two in a typical scenario where you have to train for both yeah so now I would say I'm
21:19sort of took a break from air rifle when I was selected for three position in the Olympics but
21:26in Tokyo I was playing both events and even after that for a couple of competitions I
21:33qualified for Tokyo through air rifle but I was in the main team in three positions so that has
21:40been always there you know one one event has always helped me in the other the stability
21:45we need in air rifle really helps me in three position standing and the patience that is needed
21:51in one helps me in the other so I think it's just like they complement each other and then
21:57it just when you are when you are in your training period you just know how to manage and balance the
22:04time and you know either you train for one event in the evening or divide your morning training
22:12sessions for both the events so I think it just goes hand in hand but you should know what you
22:17want and it's very much manageable and it's always good to do both because sometimes if you're just
22:25too tired of any one event you always have something else to look forward to and I always
22:30believe that there should not be only one thing that you're doing which always you should have
22:35something extra and fun so that you whenever you get back to your main event you have something
22:41new when you go back so yeah rightly said yes wow what a journey so Anjum can we have a few
22:52rapid fire rounds now sure so a lot of people do not know that you are actually a great artist too
22:59I mean in fact you know you take your painting very seriously right yeah so who is your favorite
23:06painter there were so many to choose between yeah I mean I have always admired art even if
23:17it is not of any famous artist and so in Chandigarh you know there was my friend's father
23:27Rajendra Sharma sir he was a professor in art college in Chandigarh and he used to come to
23:33our school to take some classes for art and that's when I really admired that how with just one pencil
23:41or how with just one color he would make so many different shades and you know draw something and
23:47I really fell in love with art even more so I think I've really admired him and also you know
23:53there have been so many great artists worldwide but there's no one in particular but I think I just
24:00overall enjoyed the experience of painting and then experience of when people like my painting
24:06so I think it's just out of my calmness and my curiosity to paint something it just I enjoy it
24:13more rather than rather than the artists right yeah no I mean just oh it was a it was a rapid fire
24:21sorry no no he explained in paragraphs no but corroborating to what you said shooters are
24:30generally so intellectuals I mean apart from shooting for example we've got Manu Barker who
24:35reads a lot of books I think he also plays the violin right if I'm not mistaken she plays it
24:39right yeah likewise we've got somebody like Abhinav Bindra whom I can listen throughout
24:45you know he talks so much sense he just you know talks through of course Rajyavan Vardhan
24:52Singh Arthur he is really revolutionized you know Indian sports ecosystem when you're the sports
24:58minister so to say he's also kind of an intellect sort of you know the way he used to represent
25:03before the media and stuff like that then you being a painter I know it's really great I mean
25:08it's not only about what you're doing you know as a profession but as a backup that
25:15really shows the depth that shooters have in general you know apart from shooting yeah that's
25:21really great yeah so tomorrow if you have to wake up and God you know it's a hypothetical situation
25:26tells you that okay you have got two options either you can paint a painting just like
25:33uh Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa or maybe or also uh the other option is that win a gold medal at
25:40the Olympics which one will you choose obviously winning a gold medal at the Olympics I can still
25:47paint after winning the medal I can paint but first I'll need a medal that's a good yeah true
25:55true uh of course uh like you already discussed we have had so many legends in shooting which
26:03one shooter you think really revolutionized the entire ecosystem of shooting here in India
26:08I mean we've got so many I mean it'll go on and on uh I mean but I think if you talk about uh
26:15the biggest change I would say it was Avinash Bhaiya and Gagan Bhaiya both they are like
26:22the biggest names I would say in shooting yeah but I think now for the next couple of decades
26:31now Manu would be there and some people might not know uh later about couple of them but uh
26:38I would say Avinash Bhaiya and Gagan Bhaiya yeah great great you being from Chandigarh
26:44Chandigarh is known for food uh they're also very lively people dance and all that so what's your
26:49favorite food uh I think anything in street food I really really love uh it can be
26:59chaat papdi my go-to uh go-to street food because my family likes it too so
27:06tikki chaat papdi is good uh
27:10chole bhature are very tasty
27:16thank you so much Anjum uh it is such a fascinating journey that uh you have explained
27:22to us in such a nice manner and uh we can only see you uh shooting yourself into more and more
27:27glory not only for yourself but also for us we're very selfish enough to ask more from you
27:32and uh thank you so much for coming in and we can only wish you all the best and you'll only
27:37get better from here and uh looking forward to you and your journey and we'll be closely you know
27:43following you again uh in in times to come you deserve a good rest now and I'm sure you'll be
27:48back uh you know at your best in the coming competitions and uh all the best for your
27:53future journey thank you so much thanks a lot Anjum thanks thank you