No shooting in 2022 CWG? Batra says it’s not final yet

New Delhi, With “assumptions” being made about the exclusion of shooting sports from the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Narinder Batra today said it was too early for the organisers to decide on the sports programme. Birmingham, on Thursday, replaced Durban as the hosts of the 2022 event.
Media reports suggested that the organisers had already made up their mind to drop shooting from the list of disciplines for cost and logistical reasons. The nearest shooting range is nearly 193km away from the host city.
Historically, India has done well in shooting in the Commonwealth Games, and if the discipline is taken out of the competition, the country will be severely hit in the overall medal standings. However, the newly-crowned IOA chief Batra said it was too early to get worried about shooting’s exclusion.
“The Commonwealth Games were shifted from Durban to Birmingham and they (organisers) have said the shooting range is 120 miles away, so they want to drop it from the programme. But this is not a final decision,” said Batra.
“A protest has been registered from India, even the English have protested and so have other countries. The international federation is also involved. There is nothing to worry about it. Even in Gold Coast (2018), the shooting competition is being held at a different place. Let’s see, don’t come to a conclusion yet,” he added.
Batra said IOA would write a detailed letter to the organisers of the 2022 Commonwealth Games after the holiday season gets over.
“I think we won some 15-16 medals in the last edition of the Games. We are aware of the scenario. Today, I spoke to the Commonwealth Games Federation president (Louise Martin). She said she would take care of this. Decisions can change too. It (the Games) is not happening tomorrow, this event is happening in 2022, so let’s wait before making any assumptions about shooting sports,” he said.