You teach a man, you teach a man. You teach a woman, you teach a generation
Chandra Tomar
Almost ten years ago, Chandro Tomar took her granddaughter to a local firing range. In doing so, Tomar accidentally discovered her own natural talent for shooting. Hailing from the Baghpat district in Uttar Pradesh, she was 65 when she first picked up a rifle. The instructor at the time spotted Tomar’s talent. He was clearly impressed with her skill, precision and sharp eye and encouraged her to take up this sport professionally. In the beginning of her career, Tomar faced a lot of resistance. People including her relatives ridiculed her for taking up this male dominated sport. But Tomar was far from discouraged. She excelled at the art at shooting and began to participate in competitions. Tomar was so good at it that some of her fellow male competitors stopped showing up at the range for fear of being ‘humiliated’ as a result of losing to an older woman. Today, Chandra Tomar is the world’s oldest sharpshooter at 78 years of age and has won more than 25 national championships in shooting. In addition to these accolades, she boasts of six children and 15 grand-children who also keep her busy. She is an amazing example of how old age doesn’t have to be a limiting factor and is an inspiration to the younger generation.
Chandra Tomar organizes training camps to motivate village girls in shooting and has trained more than 27 international-level shooters from her own village. Chandro’s daughter and grand-daughter are international shooters as well and have participated and won in several shooting competitions. At an age, when her equals prefer to take life easy, for Tomar it is about winning the next competition and earning a new title.
Chandra Tomar is the world’s oldest sharpshooter at 78 years of age and has won more than 25 national championships in shooting. She organizes training camps to motivate village girls in shooting and has trained more than 27 international-level shooters from her own village. She is an amazing example of how old age doesn’t have to be a limiting factor and is an inspiration to the younger generation.
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