Former National Shooting Coach Sunny Thomas Dies

Former India shooting coach Sunny Thomas, under whose tutelage the sport achieved some historic highs including multiple Olympic medals, died on Wednesday after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 84 and breathed his last in Kottayam where he was based. Thomas is survived by his wife KJ Josamma, sons Manoj Sunny, Sanil Sunny and daughter Sonia Sunny. The former shooter, who guided the Indian marksmen from 1993 to 2012, was a first-hand witness to several momentous occasions in the sport's history. He was bestowed with the Dronacharya award in 2001 and was part of the coaching staff during the 2004 Athens Olympics where Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore became the first Indian to win a Games medal in shooting with his silver in the men's double trap competition.

The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) president Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo condoled the death of Thomas.

“This is a void which Indian Shooting will find very difficult to fill. Professor Thomas was an institution in Shooting and India would not have become the Shooting power that it is today, without his selfless contribution to our sport,” said Deo.

“The entire Shooting community is in grief and on behalf of everyone at the NRAI, I send my heartfelt condolences to his loved ones,” he added.

The highest point in Thomas' career came in Beijing when Abhinav Bindra became the first Indian to claim an individual gold medal, bagging the yellow metal in the men's 10M air rifle event.

Bindra always held Thomas in high regard as a coach, and it reflected in his touching tribute to him, calling the octogenarian a "father figure." "Deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Prof. Sunny Thomas. He was more than a coach, he was a mentor, guide, and father figure to