Who Is Manavjit Singh Sandhu? Career, Medals and Achievements
New Delhi, November 2: Manavjit Singh Sandhu is one of the best-known names in Indian trap shooting. Across his career, he has earned respect for his accomplishments in major competitions.
Manavjit has competed in four Olympic Games. He is also remembered as the first Indian shotgun shooter to become champion at the ISSF World Shooting Championship, a feat he achieved in 2006.
Manavjit Singh Sandhu was born on November 3, 1976, in Amritsar, Punjab. He grew up in a household where shooting was part of everyday life. His father, Gurbi Singh Sandhu, was a shooter, an Olympian, and an Arjuna Award winner. Gurbi Singh was Manavjit's first coach and passed on the key techniques of the sport to his son.
His first major public recognition came in 1998. At the Asian Games, he impressed with his performance and won a silver medal for India. The same year, he set his sights on a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.
In 2004, Manavjit got his first chance to represent India at the Olympics, competing at the Athens Games. He finished 19th, a result that did not reflect his potential but gave him valuable experience on the global stage.
The 2006 World Championship in Zagreb was a standout moment. Manavjit won gold in trap shooting and returned home with the title. In the same year, he reached the top of the world trap shooting rankings for the first time. He became only the second Indian, after Abhinav Bindra, to win a gold medal at the World Championship.
He competed at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, but returned without a medal. He also took part in the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympics, though he did not win any Olympic medal for India in those editions.
Manavjit's international record includes four silver medals at the Asian Games and six gold medals at the Asian Clay Shooting Championship. He also won gold at the World Cup held in Mexico.
For his services to shooting, Manavjit received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in 2006 and the Arjuna Award in 1998.