When Maheshwari Chauhan was twelve years old, she took possession of the Beretta 682, one of the many shotguns in her gun-loving grandfather’s extensive collection.
Her summertime pastime of going to her family’s shooting range in their Rajasthani town, Siana, has evolved into something far more serious. The 27-year-old Chauhan placed second in the last Olympic qualifying competition held in Doha last week, earning him a quota for the Paris Olympics.
Her quota allowed India to field two women in the skeet shooting competition for the first time at the Olympics. Additionally, it increased India’s record because the nation would now field 21 shooters to compete in the July 26–August 11 Games.
On the federation’s selection merit list for Paris, Chauhan, who won the silver medal at the qualifying tournament in Doha, moved up to joint first place with Dhillon, scoring 11 points, while Ganemat Sekhon finished third with nine points.
But Chauhan didn’t have these records or figures on her mind when she started. Her favourite part of a day at the gun range was hanging out with her family on their Siana farmlands.
Her father Pradeep Singh, brother Daksheshwar Singh, and grandpa Ganpat Singh would accompany Chauhan. Chauhan tried her hand at trap shooting first, but after a year she switched to skeet, which is a more difficult and technical sport than trap and double trap.
The fact that I was under no pressure was one factor that made shooting easy for me. I simply considered shotgun shooting to be enjoyable and a way to decompress. As a 12-year-old, it did take some getting used to the physical aspects of the sport because of the gun’s recoil and impact, but at that point, Chauhan notes that he would only practice for two to three months throughout the summer.
After mastering the shotgun, Chauhan trained with national coach and Olympic champion Ennio Falco, who “helped me with the technicalities of skeet,” and later with Amardeep Rai, the former national skeet champion.
Shooters in skeet have targets flying from two opposing towers at different angles and heights, in contrast to trap or double trap, when targets are fired from fixed angle homes. It makes the target’s flight more difficult and unpredictable than in other shotgun events.
But Chauhan has to get over more challenges with skeet than just that. She laughs, “A lot of people take time to believe that I can handle the shotgun because I am a diminutive shooter.” “However, what really helped me was spending time at the village range stations and creating impressions of each station with the high and low houses every single practice day.”
Revolution in 2017
Chauhan finished in the top ten at the Asian Championship in 2016, after placing in the top 20 at the 2013 ISSF World Cup in Mexico. But Chauhan’s ascent to prominence on the national scene came from a bronze at the 2017 Asian Championships.
Before taking home a bronze at the Asian Championships in Kuwait this year, where Raiza Dhillon secured India’s first skeet quota for the Paris Games, the shooter competed for the Indian teams in both the World Cup and the World Championship.
Chauhan says she stayed composed and trusted in the hard work she had put in while training under Italian coach Riccardo Filipelli in Aritzo, where 2022 World Cup Final silver medallist Martina Bartolomei and Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Diana Bocosi also practise. Chauhan says she knew she was running out of time to win a quota.
“The most important lesson I took away from Italy was the calm mentality of the Italian shooters.” They maintain composure and don’t lose sight of the goal while enjoying themselves in the sport, according to Chauhan.
“The change for me was how I mount the gun,” she continues. I used to connect with the lead in front of the target. I now mount the gun in front of me, make contact with it, follow the lead, and fire. Yes, the language barrier made it possible for me to feel lonely in Italy, but after spending five or six hours at the range, I would be exhausted and just want to sleep at night.
While forcing her to relearn certain skills, Filipelli emphasised the importance of Chauhan “having fun.” or “the Italian Way, the fun way,” as he puts it.
“My first priority was to put her at ease and convey to her that having fun should be the foundation of skeet. We spent a lot of time working on the stock’s face, movement, and focused approach. However, the fundamental strategy has been to film things the enjoyable, Italian way.
Chauhan could not help but hear Dhillon’s and Filipelli’s remarks when she arrived in Doha for the competition. “Raiza informed me in Doha that she had shot without considering the quota location after receiving her quota in Kuwait. It gave me confidence to shoot based on my advantages, adds Chauhan.
She was reminded of her grandfather, who passed away in 2012, as she returned with a medal and a quota. “He would have been proud of me to see me win the quota for India and to ensure that two Indian women skeet shooters will be representing their country in the Olympics in Paris.”
The shooter from Rajasthan wed hotelier and fellow shooter Adhiaj Singh last year. The family owns a shooting range in Rajsamand, where the shooter presently trains. “I am fortunate to have the unwavering support of my spouse Adhiraj Singh and his parents as well as my family. It becomes more difficult to use firearms if you start keeping track of your expenses. Fortunately, I have not experienced that,” says Chauhan.
