World champion powerlifter Mahant Gaurav Sharma, who recently took up shooting, is all set to appear in the 36th Delhi State Shooting Championship which begins from February 8 at the Manav Rachna Shooting Ranges in Haryana.
Gaurav, who took up powerlifting at the age of 17, and had won two gold medals at the European Championships in 2019, earlier bagged the bronze medal in 10m ARM shooting event at the Khelo Masters Games 2019-2020 in Ghaziabad.
Talking about his participation, Gaurav said, "After lockdown, this is my first event. I am really happy with it. I want to give my best. My coach Falaq Sher Alam is guiding me well."
Following the Delhi State Shooting Championship, he will also appear in the Double trap event later this year.
"For any athlete it is an honour to represent India and when the tricolour goes high, you can't express that feeling," Gaurav said.
Gaurav also clinched two gold medals at the 2016 World Powerlifting Championships in England. In 2007, he won four gold medals at the Commonwealth Championships in New Zealand.
Initially starting out as a weightlifter, Gaurav later switched to powerlifting under the guidance of Dronacharya awardee coach Bhupender Dhawan. But now he has switched to shooting. "Shooting is something that helps me keep calm. I will try to participate in more shooting competitions now," he added.
