At 15 years of age, promising shooter Shapath Bhardwaj has become the youngest Indian athlete to figure in the government’s Target Olympic Podium (TOP) scheme.
The Meerut-based shooter, studying in class 10, is among 45 athletes, including Olympic medallists PV Sindhu, Sakshi Malik and Saina Nehwal, to be selected for the scheme, reported PTI.
The TOP Scheme Elite Athletes Identification Committee in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, chaired by Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, selected the athletes after evaluating their performance in comparison with the international standard. These athletes will be provided financial assistance for their customised training at institutes having world class facilities and other necessary support.
Bhardwaj attracted the attention of the shooting fraternity when he was selected for India’s double trap team at the age of 14 after selection trails in Patiala in November 2016.
He represented India along with his senior teammates Ankur Mittal and Sangram Dahya in the ISSF World Cup in Delhi in February 2017 and thereafter the ISSF World Cup in Mexico in April 2017 where he secured 10th and 12th ranks respectively.
He then finished fourth in the qualifying round of the ISSF World Cup in Cyprus in May 2017 and topped the 22-shot shoot-off to enter the final where he finished sixth.
The 15-year-old also participated in the ninth International Junior Shotgun Cup held in Finland in July and scored 137 out of 150 as India won the gold medal. He ended up winning the individual as well as team gold in the International Junior Grand Prix in Italy last year as well.
Bhardwaj will now represent India in the forthcoming ISSF Junior World Cup in Italy and ISSF World Championship in Moscow.
