Bangladesh shooter Robiul Islam was realistic about his chances in the forthcoming Paris Olympics鈥攕et to be held from July 26 to August 11鈥攁s his initial target is to finish in the top eight of the men鈥檚 10-metre air rifle event.
鈥楳y target is to be in the final eight. It would be fantastic if I could do so. Because the best eight shooters will fight for medals,鈥� the 25-year-old shooter, who had dreamt of directly qualifying for the Olympics, told 抖阴精品.
Robiul recorded his career-best international score of 628 in the eight-shooter final round of the Asian Championships in Jakarta in January 2024, but that was not enough for a direct qualification as he fell short by 0.3 points.
鈥業 had a dream that I would go to Paris with direct qualification but narrowly missed the chance in Jakarta,鈥� Robiul lamented.聽
He was not sure of his wild card entry until mid-June, which left him overjoyed. Since then, Robiul, a BBA student at a private university in Dhaka, kept his emotions in check and started working hard to utilise the opportunity of a lifetime as he understood that even a minimal mistake might throw him out of the race in the Olympics.
He has now been sweating out at the shooting range and the gym for around seven hours鈥攕ix days a week鈥攖o prepare to bring out his best.
His hard work under Iranian coach Mohammad Zaer Rezaei, who has been working with the Bangladesh Shooting Sport Federation since January 2022, is seemingly paying off as he has been scoring 630-631 during training.
The boy from Pabna is now looking to maintain his form and replicate it in the world鈥檚 biggest sporting extravaganza, as he believes that his current training scores might help him to reach the top eight in Paris.
鈥業 am trying to maintain the form I currently have, solving instrumental and other problems during training. I don鈥檛 want to make silly mistakes in Paris. If I can score more than 630, I think it is possible for me to reach the top eight in the Olympics,鈥� he said.
Robiul has an idea about his opponents in the Olympics, as he faced many of them in the 34 international competitions he has participated in since 2015.
鈥業 have an idea about my opponents in the Olympics. Everyone has high hopes, but only after reaching the top eight one can expect to make it his own day,鈥� he said.
Robiul, who became a shooter coincidentally, won gold in the 10-metre air rifle event of the National Shooting Championship five consecutive times from 2020 to 2024.
鈥業 whimsically participated in a competition at the Pabna Rifle Club in 2010 and emerged as champion. And that made my father [Shahidul Islam, a retired chemist] decide to help me become a shooter,鈥� said Robiul.
Robiul was then admitted to the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan in 2011 before winning five gold medals in the National Junior Shooting Championship from 2015 to 2019.