Manu Bhaker Scripts History with Bronze, First Indian Woman to Win an Olympic Shooting Medal

Manu Bhaker scripted history on Sunday by winning an Olympic bronze medal in the women's 10m air pistol event at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The shooter from Haryana became the first Indian female to earn a medal in Olympic shooting. This victory marks a significant milestone for the 22-year-old, who overcome several setbacks since the Tokyo Olympics and opened India's medal tally at the Paris Olympics.

Soon after her victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated her for winning India's first medal at the Paris Olympics 2024, a bronze in the Women's 10M Air Pistol event. "A historic medal! Well done, @realmanubhaker, for winning India’s FIRST medal at #ParisOlympics2024! Congrats for the Bronze. This success is even more special as she becomes the 1st woman to win a medal in shooting for India. An incredible achievement! #Cheer4Bharat," posted the Prime Minister on his social media platform "X".

President of India, Draupadi Murmu extended warm congratulations to Manu Bhaker. "Heartiest congratulations to Manu Bhaker for opening India’s medal tally with her bronze medal... She is the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal in a shooting competition. India is proud of Manu Bhaker." The President also acknowledged the inspirational impact of her feat, particularly for women in sports, and wished her continued success, stating, "Her feat is going to inspire many sportspersons, especially women. I wish she scales greater heights of accomplishment in the future," posted the President on "X".

In the final round of the women's 10m air pistol event, Korean shooter Oh Ye Jin clinched the gold with a new Olympic record score of 243.2, while her compatriot Kim Yeji secured silver with 241.3. Bhaker was in contention for the silver medal but fell short as Kim's final scores of 9.7 and 9.8 narrowly edged out Bhaker’s scores of 10.1 and 10.3. Bhaker began the final strongly, scoring 50.4 in her first series of five shots and maintaining a score of 100.3 after the second set.

Reflecting on her journey, Bhaker's recent triumph in Paris was a redemption after the Tokyo Olympics, where she struggled and did not qualify for the finals in any of her three events.

Bhaker's bronze medal is notable as it ends a 12-year dry spell for India in Olympic shooting. She is now the fifth Indian shooter to secure an Olympic medal, joining the ranks of Abhinav Bindra, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Vijay Kumar, and Gagan Narang.​