Latest news with #ShootingLeagueofIndia
Indian Express
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
India's shooting league gets international federation support: ‘We are ready to receive attention'
The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) put its weight behind the upcoming Shooting League of India (SLI), a National Rifle Association of India-organised event, stating that the event was part of the ISSF's design to keep the sport in the Olympic programme. Shooting has been excluded from the Commonwealth Games on multiple occasions. It was excluded from this year's World University Games, too. The withdrawal of the programme, coupled with pressure from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has forced the world body to think outside the box. 'ISSF is working very hard for marketing, for communication, because it is really important because we realize that people don't know what we are, what we do. We know very well inside the family, but it's not enough. We have to open not only the door, but also the window in the world, and we are ready to receive attention,' ISSF president Luciano Rossi admitted in a virtual media roundtable on Monday. One part of this push is to align with the discipline of eSports, now a programme that features prominently in the plans of the IOC. NRAI president Kalikesh Singh Deo was recently appointed as the interim chairperson of the ISSF Committee on eSports and Innovations and has ensured that there will be eSports at the Shooting League of India. 'We also understand the pressures and the pulls of the current market of audiences. As he has said, and I reiterate, there are more than 450 million, 500 million gamers who exist. The idea is to try and tap an audience of fans,' said Deo. He added, 'While all of us may understand the intricacies of pulling that trigger and the release of the breath and the stillness of the mind to maintain the competitive posture. However, to make a common man understand what the shooter has to go through, I think a lot of technology can be brought in, the biofeedback can be driven, new camera angles can be brought in to ensure that there is more excitement related with the broadcast as well as a better understanding of what the athlete is going through. I think that's the level of communication that we intend to bring out from the Shooting League of India.' Apart from an eSports push – as well as a shooting league that has, according to Deo, 70 foreign shooters and close to 400 domestic shooters signed up – there is also the support that India will provide to the sport. Deo said that India would ensure a shooting programme at the 2030 Commonwealth Games and should the bid for the 2036 Olympics materialise, would support the programme wholeheartedly. 'I spoke with the Chair of the CWG. It was a mistake to remove shooting from the Games roster in 2022. The ISSF did what needed to be done at that point. But that's in the past. We are ready to cooperate again,' said Rossi. Deo agreed with the Italian and reiterated that shooting would be at the heart of any multi-sport event hosted by the country. Over the next four years (including 2025), India is set to host four different ISSF events. India will host a Jr World Cup this year, the Asian pistol and rifle Championships next year, an all-format quota World Cup in 2027 and finally the Jr World Championship in 2028. Deo spoke about plans to hold the Shooting League of India in November, but said that a clearer picture would emerge once the NRAI can lock in franchises and hold an auction. 'We are in an advanced stage of negotiation with the franchises. We still expect to hold our auction towards the end of August, maybe sometime in September, beginning of September. The schedule still remains in November. We are in advanced talks with some sponsors, with broadcasters,' said Deo.
News18
17 hours ago
- Sport
- News18
India playing a big role in popularising shooting sport: ISSF chief Rossi
New Delhi, Jul 28 (PTI) International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) President Luciano Rossi on Monday said the global body wants to take the sport to great heights in Asia, and India would play a pivotal role in achieving that. ISSF has a total of 163 member countries but India has emerged as the hub of the shooting sport, given the number of teenagers taking up the sport. In a bid to harness talent, the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) will also be organising a franchise-based Shooting League of India (SLI) later this year. 'The ISSF has 163 member countries across continents. But the biggest (potential) now is (in) India," said Rossi in an interaction with the media. 'ISSF relies on a strong cooperation from the NRAI and also other Asian countries. We have members from five continents, but Asia has a lot of talent and the incredible scores are a testimony to that," he said. 'We are working with India and China to help increase the sport activity around in Asia." NRAI president Kalikesh Singh Deo said that the global body had consistently helped India by awarding major international competitions to the coutry. 'ISSF has always been very generous towards India. They awarded us the World Cup Final in 2024 after the Olympics. This year, we are conducting the Junior World Cup. Next year in February, we have the Asian Shooting Competition… in 2027, the ISSF has given us a World Cup quota competition. 'And in 2028, we have the Junior World Championship, where thousands of young shooters will come from all over the world to participate in India," said Kalikesh. 'This is, of course, exciting for the Indian shooters, because most of our shooters come in the rather young category… we've had shooters as young as 16, going up to 24, 25, one of the youngest teams in the world. And, of course, one of the most successful teams in the world in the recently held Argentina and Peru and World Cups, as well as Munich." 'We are very excited that the world's first Shooting League of India is going to be held in India towards the end of November. We are very grateful to ISSF for listing it in the calendar. More than 70 international shooters from over 20 countries have agreed to participate in this. And of course, more than 400-500 domestic shooters have applied to be part of the auction process," added Kalikesh. Rossi said that ISSF is trying to make shooting a more television and spectator-friendly sport and the changes could be seen at LA28. 'For too many years, we talked inside the (shooting) family (fraternity). We forgot to showcase (the sport) outside the family (fraternity). It was a big mistake. 'Now, we are working to repair this. We (will) invest not only money, but also give a lot of attention to it. We are working for a new format for the Olympic Games. 'And we will test it this year in the World Cup Final that will be in Doha. We will be ready for LA28. We understand that shooting is not a physical sport, as some the other sports are. It doesn't mean that we can't make it more exciting and viewer-friendly." Rossi also hinted that there was a proposal to increase the number of finalists in shotgun events from six to eight and also in rapid fire, to bring uniformity in the sport. 'We have to increase the number of finalists in shotgun from six to eight, in rapid fire from four to eight, because in all other discipline it is eight. We are working on this," said Rossi. PTI AM AM AT AT view comments First Published: July 28, 2025, 20:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
The Hindu
19 hours ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Shooting League of India promises to trigger innovation
The inaugural Shooting League of India (SLI) could pave the way for innovation, making the competition crisp, capturing the emotion and drama of the athletes, and making it attractive for the fans who enjoy watching sports. The president of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF), Luciano Rossi, and the president of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), Kalikesh Singh Deo, promised to help the game evolve in a healthy, ethical, and interesting way as they addressed the media online on Monday. Collaboration 'For the first edition of the league, we work together with India. It will be a great success,' assured Rossi, from his home in Italy, as he fondly pulled out a photo to recall his association with Dr. Karni Singh, the first Indian to win a World Championship medal in shooting. 𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙣 🏅💙# — Shooting League Of India (@SLI_Live) July 22, 2025 'We are in an advanced stage of negotiations with the sponsors, broadcasters. We expect to finalise and make the announcements by the end of September or early October,' said Kalikesh. Rossi and Kalikesh agreed that it was important to help the fans understand what the shooter was going through and appreciate the remarkable levels of accuracy being achieved in the sport. Change in format 'For too long, we had forgotten to show what we are. It was a big mistake. We are working towards a better format for the Los Angeles Olympics. It will be athlete first. We are collecting new ideas. We are close to change, without forgetting the spirit of the sport. Having finals that were too long, without emotion and drama, was not good for the sport,' conceded the ISSF president. Kalikesh observed that the vision for the shooting league was to have better visibility for the sport and gain commercial and financial support for the shooters, both domestic and international. 'We can do a lot with the league,' said Kalikesh, asserting that the evolution of the sport in a more viewer-friendly avatar could be the way forward, even though shooting has done well to retain its 15 events across pistol, rifle and shotgun sections, offering a total of 45 medals in the Olympics, despite new games jumping into the bandwagon.
United News of India
5 days ago
- Sport
- United News of India
Two-time Olympic medalist David Kostelecky looks forward to SLI
New Delhi, July 23 (UNI) Czech trap shooter David Kostelecky, at 50, is one of the oldest athletes to have expressed interest in the upcoming Shooting League of India(SLI). The two-time Olympic gold medallist (gold in 2008 Beijing Olympics and silver in 2020 Tokyo Olympics), who began shooting at the age of 14, turned 50 this year but remains as excited as ever to participate in this first-of-its-kind tournament. Kostelecky explained that his love for team events is the primary reason for his excitement about the league. "I think it is more about the teams than about individual shooters. And I love it because this is what I am missing in our sport or my career," the Czech shooter said. "I am excited to be a part of a team and try to win it together, because all my life I have competed for myself and for my country. I think our sport needs more team events. I also love to shoot the mixed events at the World Cups. Thus, for me, participating in this league is better than normal competition. So this was my motivation for sure," he added. Having started shooting 36 years ago, David also spoke about how he has adjusted his fitness regimen over the years to ensure he remains fit enough to continue in the sport. Drawing motivation from Giovanni Pellielo, who recently won a gold medal in the 2025 ISSF Trap World Cup in Lonato at the age of 55, Kostelecky believes that physical and mental fitness can help one achieve excellence, regardless of age. Kostelecky, who became the oldest Czech player to win an Olympic medal in 2020, said, "I am happy to say that I think I have changed my fitness routine over the years. I have tried to be stronger also because I thought it was missing. I have seen the change it has brought to my sport. And obviously, when I was young, it was easy for me to stay fit normally, but now I am already aging, so I have to do more than before. So I try to control my food and do regular exercise, play some tennis and padel to stay fit." He further revealed how, back in 2016, he was facing issues with his eyes and could not see properly, thus being on the verge of ending his career. However, he found an optometrist who helped him with his eyesight, which further allowed him to shoot for nine more years. "Vision is most important in our sport. So there is a guy who can check your vision in the sport, not to make you read perfectly, but they can measure how your eyes are behaving in the sport, how you see the depth of the space and stuff like this. They can also improve it. And it is really working because I had a lot of problems with my eyes. I am using contact lenses now and this guy saved my career in 2016," the 2015 Larnaca World Cup gold medallist revealed. He signed off by expressing his excitement to play alongside some of the best shooting talent in the world and said, 'I think it is really great for the community to have an event like this, because despite seeing somebody for 10, 15 years, you do not know him. But now if you participate with him in the team, you can become real friends and buddies. So that is really great and I think this can put all the people together." UNI RKM
News18
6 days ago
- Sport
- News18
Olympic Champion Shooter David Kostelecky Hails Shooting League of India: 'More About Teams Than Individuals'
The two-time Olympic gold medallist turned 50 this year but remains as excited as ever to participate in this first-of-its-kind tournament. Czech trap shooter David Kostelecky, at 50, is one of the oldest athletes to have expressed interest in the upcoming Shooting League of India. The two-time Olympic gold medallist (gold in 2008 Beijing Olympics and silver in 2020 Tokyo Olympics), who began shooting at the age of 14, turned 50 this year but remains as excited as ever to participate in this first-of-its-kind tournament. Kostelecky explained that his love for team events is the primary reason for his excitement about the league. 'I think it is more about the teams than about individual shooters. And I love it because this is what I am missing in our sport or my career," the Czech shooter said. 'I am excited to be a part of a team and try to win it together, because all my life I have competed for myself and for my country. I think our sport needs more team events. I also love to shoot the mixed events at the World Cups. Thus, for me, participating in this league is better than normal competition. So this was my motivation for sure," he added. Having started shooting 36 years ago, David also spoke about how he has adjusted his fitness regimen over the years to ensure he remains fit enough to continue in the sport. Kostelecky, who became the oldest Czech player to win an Olympic medal in 2020, said, 'I am happy to say that I think I have changed my fitness routine over the years. I have tried to be stronger also because I thought it was missing. I have seen the change it has brought to my sport." 'And obviously, when I was young, it was easy for me to stay fit normally, but now I am already aging, so I have to do more than before. So I try to control my food and do regular exercise, play some tennis and padel to stay fit." He signed off by expressing his excitement to play alongside some of the best shooting talent in the world and said, 'I think it is really great for the community to have an event like this, because despite seeing somebody for 10, 15 years, you do not know him. But now, if you participate with him in the team, you can become real friends and buddies. So that is really great and I think this can put all the people together." view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
