Gujarat’s shooting star Lajja Gauswami will add another feather to her cap come Wednesday.
Gujarat’s shooting star Lajja Gauswami will add another feather to her cap come Wednesday.
Lajja, based out of Vallabh Vidyanagar, will be presented the Raksha Mantri Padak by National Cadet Corps (NCC) at a function at the Four Gujarat Girls Battalion ground.
The award is presented to those who perform exceptional acts of courage, devotion to duty or make any contribution of lasting value to the organisation.
Terming this a big honour, Lajja said, “It gives me a great feeling. After all, this will be my first national award. I am very happy.” Interestingly, the teenager was recommended for the award way back in 2007, but her busy international schedule led to a delay in it being presented.
Lajja was associated with the Battalion from 2004 to 2008 and was the first cadet to make it to an international shooting competition. In fact, participating in the Asian Championships in Kuwait three years ago, she bagged four medals, including gold in the prone position.
The ace shooter was however disappointed with her performance in the two recently held World Cups, in Germany and Italy. She was in the fray for a medal in the three-position event at the Munich World Cup, but blew her chances.
“My heart rate increased and I couldn’t control the shot, resulting in a fifth position finish,” said Lajja, who was second before the fateful shot. Ironically, India’s Tejaswini Sawant rallied to win the bronze medal in the same final. The 19-year-old Lajja also participated in the 10m air rifle event, where she finished ninth.
The Italy World Cup was much the same for her. The only difference was that she fired a personal best of 587/600 in the three-position. “I didn’t win any medal, but my confidence has increased since I was up against Olympians and other senior players. And of course, I gave my best performance in the three-position,” she said.
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