A RevSportz Exclusive
In the ongoing Asian Shooting Championship in Shymkent, Kazakhstan, the Indian contingent is proving its mettle, sitting at the top of the medals tally ahead of heavyweights like China and South Korea. At the start of Day 6, India has 33 medals — 17 gold, 8 silver, and 8 bronze — across team events and junior categories.
One of the standout moments from Day 5 was Elavenil Valarivan’s gold medal in the women’s 10m air rifle, secured with a World Record score of 253.6. After missing out on the final at the Paris Olympics last year, Elavenil began 2025 at the ISSF World Cup South American leg, before returning to the podium with an individual bronze in Munich. In Shymkent, however, gold awaited her.
Elavenil has grown as an athlete under the mentorship of London 2012 bronze medallist Gagan Narang. Speaking exclusively to RevSportz about his student’s back-to-back performances, Narang said, “Ela has shown a commendable level of consistency across both the Munich World Cup and now at the Asian Shooting Championship. Her scores reflect stability, which is one of the hardest aspects to achieve at this stage. It shows that her technique and rhythm are settling well under competition pressure.”
But even as the results look promising, Narang stressed that consistency must be built upon. “That said, there is still room to push her average a little higher,” he said. “The next step will be to work on raising her baseline scores so that even her ‘average days’ keep her in finals contention. Small refinements in match temperament, shot routine, and last-shot focus can help her close matches strongly.”
So, what makes Elavenil special? Narang explains: “What stands out most is her composure on the line; she doesn’t let setbacks spiral and has the ability to reset quickly. That’s a big asset going forward.”
With two medals in successive events — the Munich bronze and the Shymkent gold — Elavenil has gained a valuable boost for the season ahead. “Ela should take confidence from these back-to-back solid performances,” said Narang. “She has already shown that she belongs at this level. Now, the goal is to believe in her ability to climb higher.”
The road ahead is packed with challenges, including the Shooting World Championship in Cairo later this year, followed by the much-anticipated Asian Games in Nagoya-Aichi, Japan, in 2026.
Looking back to Chateauroux, France, during the Paris Olympics, when Elavenil missed the 10m air rifle final and finished 10th, she was visibly dejected. She was seen in deep conversation with Narang, trying to dissect the small mistakes that had made the difference. Reflecting on that evening, Narang recalled, “I remember Ela feeling low after Chateauroux and speaking to me. What stood out even then was her willingness to learn and adapt, which is a real strength.
“For an athlete, every competition is a new beginning, and Ela has shown that by the way she focused back after Paris. Rather than carrying the weight of one result, she chose to use it as fuel to sharpen her process.”
That mindset — of letting go of setbacks and starting afresh — is what defines champions across disciplines. It could also be the key to more success for Elavenil in the days to come. “That mindset is what has helped her deliver consistent scores now,” Narang concluded. “If she continues to reset quickly, learn from each outing and move forward with confidence, she will only get stronger with every event.”
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