Olympics 2024 | Making of bronze medallist Manu Bhaker: Inspiration from Gita, 400 euro training fines & lessons from Tokyo

Following her disappointment at the Tokyo Olympics where she failed to qualify for the final of the two events she competed in that left her in an emotional wreck, the 22-year-old started spending more time reading the Bhagavad Gita, seeking inspiration and guidance from its motivational verses.

Chateauroux: Sometimes when things are not humanly possible despite the best possible effort, mortal beings end up resorting to seeking divine help. Exceptionally gifted individuals too have found faith in a higher power giving them the extra thrust to complete certain life goals. Manu Bhaker too has found power in the higher force.

Following her disappointment at the Tokyo Olympics where she failed to qualify for the final of the two events, the 22-year-old started spending more time reading the Bhagavad Gita, seeking inspiration and guidance from its motivational verses.

Reading the Gita

“I read a lot of Gita. One of the famous quotes is ‘Arjun karm pe dhyan do aur phal ki chinta mat karo  (Focus on the work but don’t worry about the reward).’  

The same was running in my mind last night (after the qualifications on Saturday).

Whatever happens, I’ll handle it. My goal was to give it my best in every shot (in the final) and not to worry about the outcome. I’m very happy to see this result,” said the 22-year-old after winning the women's 10 metre air pistol bronze medal here on Sunday.

When asked if she had become more spiritual following the Tokyo heartbreak, Bhaker smiled. “After Tokyo, I've become a lot more religious. As in, kattar nahi (not totally like a monk). But I do believe there is some energy somewhere which is guiding and protecting us. And there is an aura around us which feeds us that energy. So I have that faith in the one above or whoever created us. So definitely I believe in that energy.”

Bhaker then lavished praise on her long-time personal coach Jaspal Rana, a known taskmaster many shooters have found hard to work with. Known to do things differently and employ the ‘my way or the highway’ strategy, Rana is not necessarily everyone’s cup of tea but Bhaker, despite having a brief fall out with him, reunited and their bond has grown stronger.

“I figured out where he was sitting in the crowd, and I was making sure I was only looking at him and nobody else (during the qualification rounds). Looking at him gives me courage and I'm grateful that all those years of hard work that we have put in together paid off,” said Bhaker.

“I’m sure things will keep getting better for both of us. We will keep trying hard in the future, and I definitely owe a lot to him for making this happen. He made training so difficult for me that when it came to performing, it wasn't very difficult. He played a huge role in the medal, it's the sweat and blood of both of us and many more as well.”

A part of the training included Rana fining Bhaker if she missed a target, something like the great Ramakant Achrekar would do to Sachin Tendulkar during his formative years. While Achrekar placed a coin on stumps of Tendulkar and any bowler rattling it would get that piece of currency, Rana would force Bhaker to do charity if she missed her targets.

“Usually our training together is very difficult. We either work on the technical part, or his working method is very different from anyone else. For example, he would keep a target and if I didn’t score that much I would be fined. For the deficit in points (for example target is 582 and you score 478), it means you give 40 euros — or in the currency of the country we are training — to charity. Almost every training session this is the rule. At times he increases the intensity quite a lot, like 400 euros.”

Bhaker agreed she lost a lot of money. But the bronze is certain to swell her account!