At 15, shooting sensation Shapath Bharadwaj hits the bull’s eye

When Shapath Bharadwaj takes his guard tomorrow to defend his double trap title in the ISSF Junior World Cup Shotgun event in Porpetto , the whole shotgun fraternity will have a close eye on him.

Shapath has a meteoric rise in his sport in the last 2-3 years. From being a sensational young player, he has become the youngest shotgun shooter to make into the Indian senior team at the age of 14. He even made history by becoming the youngest player in the world to enter the ISSF World Cup Senior Finals in May 2017 at Larkana in Cyprus.  Though he finished 6th in the final and 4th in the qualifiers of the competition with a third highest score of 135, Shapath Bharadwaj won millions of hearts and more importantly thousands of hopes for many international medals in the years to come.

Shapath’s professional training in shooting started in 2014 when he was 12 years old. But he had an attraction for big guns from early childhood. His elder brother Shrey Bharadwaj took up shooting and used to practice in weekends in a range in Noida. Shapath, who is very close to his brother, used to persuade his parents to accompany Shrey to the range. He was only 9 years of age at that time but used to watch minutely Shrey’s shooting. His passion did not go unnoticed and his parents Swati Sharma and S Raju decided to give him a chance.

Shapath was just a young boy at that time but never let that opportunity go by. He was into the hit and try method, sometimes targeting right at the bull’s eye and sometimes falling short. But his interest and passion was replicated in each of his shots. His parents were convinced that their younger son has loads of talent. But being a middle-class family it was difficult for them to purchase guns and ammunition for training. So Shapath’s father thought of an alternative method.  “I requested a carpenter in Meerut to fashion a dummy gun by which my son could practice the moves of firing. It was like dry firing. But the man was very scared as he thought that he would be caught making guns. It took almost 1 month to convince him and ultimately he did make the dummy gun,” says S Raju.

The moves of firing were clear for Shapath but often he had to borrow guns and cartridges from friends or near relatives for actual training. And with a borrowed gun, Shapath Bharadwaj won his first shooting medal in the form of a bronze at the 33^rd North Zone Shooting Championship in New Delhi.  After this beginning, local conquers continued here and there. But it was at the age of 12 in the August of 2014, when he won the Uttarakhand State Championships, his parents did not delay in introducing formal training for him.

Shapath’s parents approached former World No 1 shooter and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award winner Ronjon Sodhi with the achievements of their ward. Impressed by his talent, Sodhi was quick to respond. He promised all possible support to Shapath and also requested former trap shooter Yoginder Pal Singh to coach him. “He was just any kid interested in shooting but as we started training, he showed perseverance and dedication towards the sport and that made me easier to nurture him,” recollects his coach, Yogi. Along with his coach’s constant support, Shapath put in all the hardwork and his dedication to become one of the best shooters in India today. As analysed by Yogi, “A lot of shooters don’t realize the importance of homework before actual shooting. But Shapath, at such a young age, thinks and works off the range to be good on range.”

Along with his range activities, he balances his studies as well. Shapath Bharadwaj is a student of St Mary’s Academy of Meerut and is presently a student of standard 10. His attendance in school might be very less because of his selection in national team, but he is utterly serious about his studies. And with the constant support from his school teachers and friends, Shapath never lags behind in studies. As fondly remembered by his mother, “Shapath is an obedient and a disciplined child from the beginning. He loves to relax by playing games on X box or watching History Channel or sometimes even reads books. But as he does not get much time these days, whenever he has time he prefers covering his school course.”

Till 2015 Shapath did not own a gun. But that did not stop him from performing impressively in domestic tournaments. And finally on 6^th June 2015, a Kreighoff double trap gun costing around 7000 Euros arrived from Germany for which Shapath had been long waiting for. He knew that the time had come when he could go outdoor as per his wishes and practice. There would be no interference between him and his target. The practice sessions would be entirely his as he would be seeing the shots breaking or missing the target.

Then came 2016, the year in which Shapath Bharadwaj graduated from being a junior champion to get selected in the national team of senior shooters. In the 60^th National Shooting Championship in Rajasthan, he got the 2^nd rank in the Juniors and 3^rd rank in the Seniors. Thus his qualification in the senior team was only a matter of time. He ended up finishing second in the senior trials in December 2016, setting his sight at the ISSF Senior World Cup. As he repayed his faith by finishing impressively in the World Cup, Shapath Bharadwaj now has become the country’s youngest athlete to figure in the government’s Target Olympic Podium (TOP) scheme.

The Sports Ministry has launched the TOP Scheme with the specific aim of supporting medal prospects for next Olympics. The Committee is chaired by ace shooter and Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra. Shapath has been selected along with 45 elite athletes in this ambitious project of the government.  

“After this selection, Shapath will be supported entirely by the government and that has reduced a lot of worries for us,” said Swati Sharma. Shapath is now currently ranked number 19 in the world. His success is a teamwork where everyone-starting from his parents, brother, coach, friends- has contributed. But signing off with his father’s words, “Yes, we all did whatever we could do. But it was entirely Shapath who made it possible….his maturity, strength, composed attitude and his way of tackling situations made him what he is at such a young age.”   

Achievements of Shapath Bharadwaj 

International

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