Pioneering Indian shooting coach Jaspal Rana dies at 49

Jaspal Rana, one of India’s finest pistol shooters who made a hugely successful transition to coaching and guided Manu Bhaker to epoch-making twin bronze medals at the Paris Olympics, has shockingly died at a mere 49 years of age after battling cardiac complications.

Rana is survived by his wife, Reena Rana, daughter Devanshi, son Yuvraj, father Narayan Singh Rana, and his two siblings, Sushma Singh and Subhash Rana.

According to National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) president Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo, Rana breathed his last at a Delhi hospital on Thursday night. Sources said he died of complications related to heart.

Rana’s untimely death has left the shooting fraternity in a state of shock.

He recently underwent a medical procedure after falling ill during the Indian contingent’s return flight from the ISSF World Cup in Munich, Germany.

Upon landing in New Delhi, he was immediately hospitalised and had a stent installed to clear a cardiac blockage. According to sources, despite initial reports of him being stable, his condition deteriorated.

Rana was serving as the high-performance coach for Indian pistol shooters.

The former shooter, who was considered a maverick in Indian shooting circles for his outspoken demeanour and passion for the sport, was a prodigal talent and won his first national level gold at just 12 years of age.

His international breakthrough were the 25m gold medals at the 1994 Commonwealth and Asian Games.

In fact, the Asiad gold was India’s first in 16 years after Raja Randhir Singh opened the account in 1978. Randhir had passed away recently after battling age-related ailments.

Rana’s biggest moment as a shooter came in the 2006 Asian Games when he snared three gold medals and a silver in a sensational performance that included equalling the world record of the time.

After a decorated career as an elite shooter, Rana transformed Indian shooting through his roles as a junior national team coach and high-performance trainer.

His most significant coaching contribution was mentoring Manu Bhaker and helping her secure two bronze medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, making her the first Indian to achieve such a feat.

As a junior pistol coach since 2012, he also groomed teen sensations such as Saurabh Chaudhary, Anish Bhanwala, and Chinki Yadav.

His work with the junior programme created a massive pipeline of international talent, creating a lasting impact on the sport.

The NRAI had officially appointed him as the High-Performance coach for the 25m pistol discipline in February last year.

A tough task-master, Rana is credited with instituting rigorous training routines that perfectly replicated the pressure of actual Olympic matches.

For his immense contributions to the sport and the development of the next generation of shooters, the government conferred on him the prestigious Dronacharya Award in 2020.

He also remains India’s most successful Commonwealth Games athlete with 15 medals (including nine golds) across four editions.