"You Just Want To Target Her": Manu Bhaker's Coach Jaspal Rana Defends PT Usha Against IOA Criticism

Manu Bhaker's personal coach Jaspal Rana on Wednesday gave full credit to Indian Olympic Association chief PT Usha for the young shooter's historic twin medals at Paris Games and said she "fought" and extended him all the support. Manu became the first Indian sportsperson post Independence to win two medals in a single Olympics, claiming bronze in both the women's 10m air pistol individual and mixed team events. "I give the credit for these two medals to PT Usha. She's the one who fought and gave me all the support despite whatever problems we had," Rana told PTI Video in an exclusive interview in New Delhi.

There were allegations by IOA officials that Usha bypassed certain provisions to get things done in the organisation.

"PT Usha is trying to do something, and everybody is after her. Why? Why do people get stuck in a position and not want to come out? Let her do whatever she's doing," the 51-year-old added.

"She was not there in the last 20 years? Put out in public what she has done wrong. You just want to target her for just one and a half years. Give her a chance; be a support to her rather than pulling her down." Rana, who had a fallout with the national shooting federation and criticised their selection policies, emphasised the importance of establishing a systematic approach to developing athletes, particularly in shooting, to ensure consistent performance.

"It's really painful when you go to the Olympics and come back with 6-7 medals, and then we talk for two or three months, and after that, for two years nobody..." "Everyone knows what Manu and I have gone through before the Olympics and even during them. By God's grace, we got two medals in pistol shooting and another in rifle," said the four-time Asian Games