After missing out on the Olympics, the youngster has shed over 10kgs and added the 50m 3P event to his schedule
New Delhi: Rudrankksh Patil is known for his nerdy, obsessive pursuit of shooting. He loves to read and research, and in a discipline where millimetres decide the podium, is not shy of tinkering with his equipment. His idea of de-stressing from shooting is to shoot more, and so when he missed the berth for the Paris Olympics, the youngster shook off the disappointment and returned to the range within days.

“I love the sport too much to stay away from it for too long. Not shooting for three days was more than enough for me. I didn’t go into mourning or anything. The people around me were more heartbroken than me. In fact, I was the one counselling my psychologist,” the 21-year-old laughed at the tragicomedy.

“I kept the quota for two years before fumbling in the trials. It’s okay. The disappointment has made me more determined.”

It has also made him smarter. In the months since Sandeep Singh and Arjun Babuta pipped him in the domestic Olympic trials for the 10m air rifle event, the 21-year-old changed his equipment, shed weight, gained muscle, reset his perspective, and developed an admiration for French swimming sensation Leon Marchand. He is now trying his hand in the tough 50m 3Positions event.

At the recent national championships, Patil made his competitive debut in the new event but couldn’t make the senior final. He finished fourth in his pet 10m event, and in the junior final that followed, breached the world record score of China’s Olympic champion Sheng Lihao with an incredible 254.9 (24 shots). It won’t be ratified as a world record due to the world body’s (ISSF) stipulations, but it does reaffirm Patil’s belief in his ability.

“To hit form early in the season is very encouraging. I am also very keen to get better at 50m as it gives me a better chance to make the Indian team for multi-discipline events,” he said. Patil wanted to try the gruelling event two years back. However, he was dissuaded by his coach Ajit Patil who thought taking up a new event two years before the Olympics wasn’t a great idea. With the new Games cycle having just begun, time was ripe to try something new. A nudge from Paris 50m 3P bronze medallist Swapnil Kusale helped.

“I have always looked upto Swapnil as we come from the same state (Maharashtra). He encouraged me to try 50m. I also noticed that a lot of top rifle shooters compete in both events. Even in India, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar manages the two events very well. In pistol, Rhythm Sangwan and Manu Bhaker have shown that one can compete in two events,” he said.

While Patil’s robust frame did help with stability across the three positions (standing, kneeling and prone), his 96kg bodyweight began to put extra pressure on his knees. So, the youngster fixed his nutrition and sleep patterns and hit the gym. The result is shedding 13kg in three months.

Another major change post-Olympics is his rifle. Patil, who shot with Austrian Steyr, has switched from Walther to Feinwerkbau, though he still swears by the Walther’s accuracy. “I think there’s not much difference in the barrel between Walther and Feinwerkbau since both are of German make, but I feel the stock of Feinwerkbau has better weight balance and fits my body best.”

The Paris miss has also taught Patil the importance of letting go, although he learnt it at the cost of his health. Two months before the four-stage selection trials, Patil observed a tiny dark patch on his ankle. He initially dismissed it, but it began to spread. It was later diagnosed as an auto immune disease that’s triggered by stress.

“I don’t recall the name of the condition, but the physical toll of stress is real. We do have psychologists to help us with the mental turmoil, but a lot of shooters lose hair or develop digestive issues because of competition stress. In my case, I got this disease,” he said.

Patil competed in the trials with the marks and itching spreading all over his body, which affected his alignment at the firing point. “It really shook my focus and I decided to address it after the trials. Thankfully, it’s almost gone now but the fear of contracting something like this again is still there,” he said.

With the new year knocking, Patil has his resolutions in place. Chief among them is to match his training scores in competitions, win back his world No.1 rank and start peaking for the 2026 Asian Games. The only way to realise those goals is to shoot more, which is hardly an issue with Patil.

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