Adriyan, a new shooting star on the rise

Kolkata: Adriyan Karmakar was seven when his father Joydeep missed an Olympic medal narrowly by finishing fourth at the London Games in 2012. Having watched that event on television, the youngster grew up with a legacy to carry forward.Last week, the 20-year-old made a statement by winning two medals — a silver in the 50m rifle prone event and a bronze in the 50m rifle 3 positions — at his maiden ISSF Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany.Interestingly, Adriyan shot with the same weapon that his father had used at the Olympics. "I started shooting with a different weapon. But shifted to this gun since it is lighter," he stated."It was a big stage. I am happy, but there's still room for improvement. It was challenging too as I had to adjust to the cold and windy conditions there," Adriyan told TOI on return to the country on Sunday. Wearing a new attire, Adriyan struggled as the leather and canvas of his jacket shrunk in the 2 degrees Centigrade on the match day.The India junior No. 1 shooter put up a good fight against French Olympian Romain Aufrere, who went on to win gold in the 3P event final. "I only came to know about him (Romain) being an Olympian when the competitors were introduced in the final round. But I shot with an open mind," he stated.Shooting came naturally to Adriyan, who picked up the game watching his father at different tournaments and national camps.According to Adriyan, being an Olympian shooter's son has both its pros and cons. "Yes, being my father's son, there's high expectations, but it was also because of him (Joydeep) that the game came naturally to me," he pointed out.Joydeep felt Adriyan's advantage is that he is technically very sound. "Adriyan used to listen to all that I used to discuss with my father when he was a kid. He is strong with that knowledge now," Joydeep said.Adriyan himself is also a keen learner. "I have interacted with (Abhinav) Bindra sir, (Jaspal) Rana sir who are all my father's friends. At the same time at Suhl, I went up to talk to coaches of other teams also to learn whatever I can," he stated.A Khelo India gold medal winner in 2022 and 2023, Adriyan aims to make the India side for the Olympics. "Definitely that's the dream, but I have to keep performing," Adriyan said looking ahead.