Asian Games 2023: Sift Kaur Samra Shoots for Stars Amid Academic Challenges

Asian Games: Sift Kaur Samra won a gold medal in the women's 50m 3P event and also set a new world record

Asian Games 2023: Sift Kaur Samra won a gold medal at the 19th Asian Games

photo: SAI/Twitter

Sift Kaur Samra won a gold medal in the women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions individual event at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China on Wednesday, 27 September.

Along with a gold medal, she also registered a new World Record by scoring 469.6 points. Along with Sift, Indian shooter Ashi Chouksey also won a bronze medal in the same event with a score of 451.9.

The golden girl from Punjab, however, is not only focused on shooting, as she is also studying medicine at the Guru Gobind Singh Medical College. After winning a bronze at the ISSF World Cup 2023, which took place in Bhopal, India, Sift revealed that managing both shooting and academics is quite difficult.

“It is bit challenging to balance studies and shooting,” she had said while speaking to the Indian Express.

A promising shooter, Sift attained her first podium finish at the ISSF World Cup this year in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. She secured a bronze medal in the individual event at the tournament. She also confirmed her seat in the 2024 Paris Olympics after finishing fifth at the ISSF World Championships 2023, Baku.

Sift Kaur at the 19th Asian Games

photo: PTI

Currently ranked number 8 in the world, 22-year-old old has a successful history in the ISSF Junior World Cup career. She grabbed a total of 3 medals in the ISSF Junior World Cup 2022, Suhl. Winning a gold in the individual event, she grabbed two silver medals in the mixed team event.

Sift trains at Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range, New Delhi under the guidance of her personal coach Mrs Deepali Deshpande and has been receiving assistance from the government under the procurement of ammunition. She also received financial assistance of around Rs 6 lakh for her Paris Olympics training.

India has sent a 33-member shooting contingent to the 19th Asian Games that will compete for a total of 51 medals. They will be competing in individual, team and mixed team events across three disciplines - rifle, pistol and shotgun.

At the time of writing, the shooting contingent had bagged 10 medals – three gold, two silver and five bronze.