New Delhi, September 22, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Indian shooter Himanshu Dhillon recalled the decisive moment that helped him move from third place to silver in the men’s 10m air rifle event at the Asian Games, saying a single shot changed the colour of his medal.
Making his senior Asian Games debut, Dhillon was in bronze-medal position during a closely contested final. Instead of focusing on the standings, he concentrated on delivering his best possible shot, a mental shift that eventually took him into second place and the fight for gold.
“At that time, when the fourth-place shootout was done, our medals were decided, and I was in third place. At that time, I thought I should give my 101% and give my best shot. Whatever happens, it doesn’t matter. I had to give my 100% to that shot because that shot could have changed the colour of my medal. And that happened, and the colour of my medal changed as I jumped to second place and fought for gold,” Dhillon said in response to an IANS query during a virtual press conference.
The pressure remained in the following shot, with Dhillon admitting that he felt anxious before the next attempt. His coach, however, helped him refocus on the shooting process rather than the possible outcome.
“In the next shot, which was to decide the bronze medal, I was a little anxious that it might go from one side to the other. My coach told me the process, and I had to fully focus on that shot. I shot that and luckily, it was a colour-changing moment for my medal, and I jumped to silver,” he said.
Dhillon said he did not enter the moment with a specific strategy aimed at securing silver. He knew that a mistake could have left him with bronze, but once he picked up his rifle, he focused solely on executing the process.
“At that time, I didn’t have any plan to give my best shot. I knew I was not supposed to make a mistake because that would have landed me with a bronze medal. But when I picked up the rifle, at that time, I was only focused on the process and thought, ‘Whatever happens, it doesn’t matter,’” he said.
The silver medal marked Dhillon’s first medal at the senior level and carried additional significance because of his family’s connection with shooting.
He revealed that his father was deeply emotional after learning about the result. Dhillon also said his uncle was an Olympian and that his father had long hoped to see him win an Olympic gold and an Asian gold medal.
“I haven’t spoken to him much. He is being very emotional. My uncle was an Olympian. He saw his journey. It was his dream that I would bring an Olympic gold and an Asian gold medal. Today, I have fulfilled my father and my family’s dream to an extent,” Dhillon said.
He added that his mother later told him how emotional his father had been on hearing about the medal and that his family had wanted to be present at the venue.
“He was very emotional at that time. I was not there, but my mother told me that he was very emotional when he heard about the medal. She told me that they wanted to be there. She could not call me at that time,” he said.
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