Arjun Singh Cheema, the 23-year-old sport shooter from Mandi, Punjab, is on the verge of securing his Paris 2024 berth. He has finished second to his compatriot Sarabjot Singh in the men’s 10m air pistol event with 583 points, just falling short of 1 off the first spot. He was a part of the gold medal-winning team in the same event, in Hangzhou Asian Games.
The shooting trials were full of ups and downs for the shooter from Punjab. In the Trials-1, he finished second with 580-16x points. With 575-12x, Cheena stood at the fifth spot after the Trials-2, in Delhi. In Bhopal, he came back strong in the Trials-3 with 583-21x points, and in the final, Trials-4, he is standing second to Sarabjot. He awaits the final list of names to be selected for the Paris contingent, that will be published in June by the selection committee.
“It was overall a good experience for me at the trials but there are some areas that I have to improve,” said Cheema in an exclusive chat to RevSportz. “The technical aspects of the game needs more focus. Fitness-wise, everything is good. But overall, the trials were good,” he added.
Arjun comes from a sporting family. His grandfather, Sardar Balwinder Singh, played national level football in the 1960s and his uncle Jagwinder Singh Cheema has been a powerlifter who holds a junior level Asian record.
“Coming from a sporting family, it was always helpful for me. You get to learn from them about their journey and learn from the mistakes they made, and the struggles they faced,” Cheema said.
He started his sporting journey as a swimmer and paricipated in Junior Swimming Championship in Austria. “Swimming was good, but I fell in love with shooting and the technical aspects of it. The skill-set required for this sport was something that drew me towards it,” said Cheema, on switching from swimming to shooting and starting the sport professionally in 2015. “I started with 10m air pistol from the very beginning only. It just came to me naturally.”
Interview with Arjun Singh Cheema during Hangzhou Asian Games 2022
🚨BREAKING & EXCLUSIVE
Arjun Cheema, member of the gold-winning 10m Air Pistol team, commends the collective effort that led to this remarkable achievement on their debut.
What’s next for Arjun Cheema? Tune in to find out👇@AgeasFederal @TheRohan22 @BoriaMajumdar… pic.twitter.com/CNgbTMqqwf
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In shooting, balance, focus and firmness of nerve is of utmost importance. Along with physical fitness, athletes need to focus on mental fitness with equal importance. “I have a daily routine that starts with meditation in the morning. Apart from the daily shooting training regime, I do work on my mental fitness also, with meditation and other outdoor activities,” said Cheema.
Happy family time is a boon for anyone. “I love spending time with my family a lot. Whenever I am not on tours for tournaments, I love to spend as much family time as possible. It helps me with my mental peace.” Cheema also mentioned about playing other outdoor sports that helps him stay in shape. He said: “I play two sports which every Indian plays or had played once in life. The sports which can be played in any lanes or anywhere in the country, cricket and football.”
Paris Olympics is round the corner and athletes are at their final lap of preparations. “Olympics is the biggest stage and we are giving our all for the preparations. I am really looking forward to it and the focus in on improving all the aspects of the game.”
Whether excited or tense? “Well, it’s a mix of emotions but I can say, the excitement and the urge to improve every day is more than the tension of the big stage.”
The Indian shooting contingent have not managed to bag a medal since London 2012, but in the recent days, there has been an upsurge in Indian shooting with multiple medals on the global stage. “I can assure you, the shooters’ preparation even for Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 was at their very best. Winning a medal is on the day. But I tell you, we will try even harder this time and keep faith in the almighty. Hope to break the medal deadlock,” Cheema affirmed
Finally, for every athlete to grow and excel in what they do, right support is of immense importance. In a previous interview with another shooter, Akhil Sheoran, we had learnt about the positive changes in the Indian shooting fraternity brought in by former elite players who are now coaches. Here also, Cheema mentioned about his coach, and the support from NRAI and SAI, and also the corporate support from OGQ.
“The National Rifle Association of India and the Sports Authority of India has been instrumental in providing the necessary equipment and training facilities to the athletes.”
Cheema will take part in the ISSF Granada World Cup from May 31 and will wait for the final list to be released by the committee; another chance of making it to the podium before Paris. He finished by lavishing praises at his corporate partner and called his uncle his biggest inspiration.
“Olympic Gold Quest has been a great support for me in my journey. And you asked me about my biggest inspiration in sport. I would say my uncle. He has been a sportsperson himself and has supported me throughout,” Cheema signed off.
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