Tokyo Olympics 2020: Mairaj, Angad will hunt in a pair

Age wise there is a generation gap, in the field of play, it's just guns blazing. That's 44-year-old Mairaj Khan and Angad Vir Singh Bajwa, 23, for you, the two skeet shooters who scripted history in Doha.

Mairaj has been in the sport for over two decades, been to one Olympics before in 2016 Rio. On Sunday, nothing mattered in poor light and rain in extremely demanding conditions as these two gentlemen gunned down two quota places in skeet and two medals for India at the Asian championship.

Mairaj does not mind he was beaten by his own former trainee to gold. "Well, this is sport. I was fully focussed on doing well as this was the last chance for me to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics. I had been shooting well in practice but somehow pressure was getting the better of me," Mairaj told Mail Today on Monday.

In his view, what helped on the big day was staying calm and focussing only on the target. "I think I was getting too obsessed with qualification. In Doha, I said to myself, just shoot, kill one target at a time and stay calm. That is what helped me in tough conditions," said the marksman from Uttar Pradesh.

And then he recollected how he had groomed Angad way back in 2013. "Well, he beat me on Sunday, and that's the way sport is. I used to coach him and after that we have travelled together for so many competitions and shot together. This is proud, that two of us will be pushing each other in Tokyo," gushed Mairaj.

In the past, for over four decades, it was trap and double trap which hogged the limelight in shotgun shooting in India. Shooters in rifle and pistol have made rapid strides and new faces have emerged. Sadly in trap, there has been stagnation and the results not there to see, with not one making the cut for the Olympics.

In the old days at the Karni Singh ranges, skeet shooters were the butt of ridicule. Yet, for men like Mairaj, all this did not matter. "We are lucky to have coach Ennio Falco. He has been working with us since 2013 and brings such valuable coaching inputs. I am thankful to have seen the highs, lows and now again making it big with Ennio behind me," said Mairaj.

Pressure is one word which affects sportspersons in different ways. "The first time you go to the Olympics, the excitement is about being there. And so you end up making mistakes. This will be my second Olympics, so I know what mistakes not to make and how I need to plan," added Mairaj.

He feels the key will be to stay fresh and not put pressure on himself. "It was only after Rio did I realise what it was to wind down. So when I go to Tokyo, I need to be fired up, fit, and at the same time fresh. My planning will begin soon and I have seen pictures of the Tokyo ranges. The skyline is clear and I will request the sports ministry and the Sports Authority of India to install the Laporte machines at the Karni Singh ranges," said Mairaj.

He feels no time can be wasted and as there is difference in the way each machine brand "throws" the targets, Laporte will be crucial to have in the Tughlakabad ranges.

Any tips for Angad? Mairaj says he has everything to share and Angad will be part of this journey to Tokyo. Amazing, the way skeet shooters have turned things around in a sport which is so nuanced.

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