Young Zuhair Sets High Targets

Young shotgun shooter Zuhair Khan had been waiting for the moment when he would win the senior national title ever since he decided to pick up a gun after watching his father compete.

- Ajai Masand

That day finally arrived earlier this month at the Karni Singh Shooting Range, when the 20-year-old clinched the trap gold at the National Championships, outshooting seasoned stalwarts and Olympians.

A third-year B.Tech student at Aligarh Muslim University, Zuhair took up the sport at 12 and had been relentlessly pursuing a senior national medal, only to miss it each time despite reaching the final on three previous occasions.

"This is my first senior national medal. I have two bronze medals in the junior category. I had reached the senior finals earlier as well, but this time I managed to convert it into a win," says Zuhair, whose father Babar Khan is also a national-level shotgun shooter.