Manu Bhaker Becomes The First Indian Woman Athlete, Since Independence, to Win 2 Medals in Single Olympic Event

Indian Olympian, Manu Bhaker, won another Bronze medal for India along with Sarobjit Singh at the 2024 Paris Olympic games.

They beat the Korean team in the mixed team 10m air pistol event. By winning another medal, Manu Bhaker also created history.

She became the first Indian woman athlete, since independence, to win two medals in a single Olympic event.

Bhaker is the fifth Indian shooter to earn an Olympic medal, joining the ranks of Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Abhinav Bindra, Vijay Kumar, and Gagan Narang.

It may come as a surprise to many that the shooting star didn’t always want to pursue a career in sports.

When she had a disappointing experience at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics due to technical challenges, she decided to quit shooting. She was so disheartened that she decided to pursue higher studies abroad or explore a career in the services.

In 2023, it was her coach Jaspal Rana who influenced her to rethink her decision. He told her, “You are one of the best shooters not just in the country but in the world. It’s up to you to decide what you want to do with your life.”

His words deeply impacted her. It was then that she decided that she would give her best to shooting.

The skilled sportswoman says that she isn’t scared of failure. “I know for sure, in my sport, I can go on for many years. I seek perfection and I am not worried about failure one bit”, she told Rev Sportz.

Manu hails from the state of Haryana. She played many sports during her school years such as skating, tennis and boxing. Her penchant for shooting began at the age of fourteen after the 2016 Rio Olympics.