Agra is a safe city for girls: Gold medalist shooter Sonia

Sonia Sharma, 22, a para athlete from

Agra

, made the city proud by winning a

gold medal

at the recently concluded World Shooting Para Sport World Cup held in Bangkok, Thailand. She won the 10m air pistol event in the team category with her teammates – Pooja Agarwal form Delhi and Rubina Francis from Bhopal. The team scored 1,070 points with Sonia contributing 357 points to the total. Talking to us after the win, Sonia tells us about her inspiration, struggles, future plans and journey so far.

Sonia Sharma with her gold medal (BCCL/ Hemant Kumar)

‘It started with a school summer camp’
Sonia gained interest in shooting when she was in class XII when she attended a summer camp organized by her alma mater, St Andrews School. She says, "In 2011, during a summer camp I was fascinated by shooting and started practising. But it didn’t last long due to financial problems and studies, and I had no choice but to discontinue it. It was only in 2015, after my father passed away, that I took up this sport and started practicing regularly."
Her late father, an irrigation department employee, left behind `1.5 lakh for her to buy a new pistol. She recalls, "I started with an air rifle but since it is heavy, I had difficulty holding it and I switched to pistol. Earlier I used to practise with the academy’s pistol or with pistols of fellow athletes but then my mother bought me a pistol from the money left by my father. He wanted me to pursue shooting as a career and win medals for the country."

Sonia at the shooting range in Eklavya Sports Stadium, Agra (BCCL/ Hemant Kumar)

‘I idolize Abhinav Bindra’
She says, "In 2008, when Abhinav Bindra won a gold medal at the Olympics, I was inspired by him and thought maybe I can also win medals for our country. When in 2011, our school introduced shooting I couldn’t stop for enrolling myself in the shooting class."
Sonia’s wish to meet her idol came true when she won scholarship from Abhinav Bindra’s Sports Foundation. She adds, "I couldn’t believe my eyes when I met Abhinav sir for the first time at target performance centre in Mohali, when I was selected for the scholarship. I won a full sponsorship for my game from the foundation."

‘Agra is a safe city for girls as compared to any other small town in UP’
Sonia, who has been born and brought up in Agra, says, "When someone asks me where am I from, I proudly say from the City of Taj. I just love the simplicity and varied culture of this city. I never feel unsafe or scared roaming around the city even at night."

‘Keeping 2020 Paralympics as target’
The left hand shooter, who is pursuing Master of Commerce from St John’s College, adds, "While the World Cup win is afresh, I don’t want to waste time thinking about it now. My aim is to win a medal at 2020 Paralympics for which I have to qualify at World Championships. I am preparing hard for the same and practising for at least seven to eight hours every day. For now, Nationals are in sight which are going to be held in Kerala in December."
Vikarant Tomar, Coach,

District Rifle Association

, Agra, says, "It is extremely difficult to get left hand grip for pistols as most shooters are right handed. We had to custom made the grip for her from Rajasthan."


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