09 February,2017 08:53 AM IST | | PTI
Olympic bronze-medallist Gagan Narang says shooting's ecosystem will take a hit if the ISSF Athletes Committee's recommendation for mixed-gender team events for future Olympics, starting with the 2020 edition in Tokyo, is ratified by the world body
New Delhi: Olympic bronze-medallist Gagan Narang says shooting's "ecosystem" will take a "hit" if the ISSF Athletes Committee's recommendation for mixed-gender team events for future Olympics, starting with the 2020 edition in Tokyo, is ratified by the world body.
In a decision that evoked mixed response, the ISSF Athletes Committee, headed by India's lone individual Olympic gold-medallist Abhinav Bindra, recommended mixed-gender team events for the Olympic Games.
The panel has sought to replace the double-trap men's event with a mixed-gender trap event, convert the 50m prone men's event into a mixed-gender air rifle event and the 50m pistol men's event into a mixed-gender air pistol event. "The ecosystem of shooting sport will take a hit with these three events going out of the Olympic program," Narang said.
The ace shooter, though, promptly added, "But like many others, I will also cross the bridge when we get to it."
Unlike some of India's top pistol shooters, Narang is not "deeply saddened" but ready to embrace it. When asked to elaborate on his statement that ecosystem of hooting will take a hit, Narang said, "Prone is very popular across the world and suppose it is dropped, so many shooters who are shooting prone only will be out."
