Indian shooting legend Jaspal Rana dies at 49

Indian shooting legend Jaspal Rana, one of the country’s most decorated athletes and a coach who helped shape a generation of champions, died in New Delhi on Friday after suffering health complications. He was 49.

Rana, who was serving as India’s high-performance coach for pistol events, was admitted to Max Hospital in Saket, South Delhi, where he died, hospital officials confirmed. Reports said he had fallen ill while returning from the ISSF World Cup in Munich and later underwent a medical procedure in Delhi.

His death prompted tributes from across India’s sporting and political landscape, with leaders hailing his contributions both as a champion shooter and as a mentor.

President Droupadi Murmu said Rana had “established himself as an icon of Indian sports” and praised his role in nurturing young talent.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described his passing as “a profound loss to the world of Indian sports”.

“He brought immense glory to the nation through his extraordinary achievements in shooting,” Modi wrote on X. “Equally remarkable was his contribution as a mentor, shaping and guiding young athletes with great dedication.”

A career filled with medals

Rana remains India’s most successful Commonwealth Games athlete, winning 15 medals – nine gold, four silver and two bronze – across four editions of the Games between 1994 and 2006.

His success extended to the Asian Games, where he won four gold medals and a silver. Among his most celebrated achievements was a haul of three gold medals at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha.

In 1994, he won gold at the World Shooting Championships in Milan and set a record score. Twelve years later, he equalled the world record in the 25m Centre Fire Pistol event with an aggregate score of 590 at the Asian Games.

Known for his fierce competitive spirit, Rana famously competed at the Doha Games despite suffering from a high fever, winning three gold medals in one of the defining performances of his career.

Building champions

After retiring from competition, Rana devoted himself to coaching and talent development.

He played a key role in identifying and nurturing young talent, helping guide the careers of shooters including Manu Bhaker, Saurabh Chaudhary and Anish Bhanwala.

Although Rana and Bhaker endured a highly publicised split before the Tokyo Olympics, the two later reconciled. He was part of the support system behind Bhaker’s resurgence, which culminated in her winning two bronze medals at the Paris Olympics in 2024.

His work as a coach earned him the Dronacharya Award, India’s highest honour for sports coaching, in 2020.

Tributes pour in

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh described Rana’s death as “a massive loss to the Indian sporting world”.

“Along with being an outstanding athlete and coach, Jaspal was an extremely simple, humble and kind-hearted human being,” Singh said.

He credited Rana with helping popularise shooting in India and bringing international recognition to the country through his achievements.

Over a career spanning more than three decades, Rana helped transform Indian shooting from a niche discipline into one of the country’s most successful Olympic sports.

For many athletes, however, his greatest contribution came not through the medals he won himself, but through the champions he inspired and developed.

– with inputs from IANS