Profile: Heena Sidhu
A Dental student, Heena Sidhu has been a practicing shooter since 2006. Heena Sidhu also made it to the junior team the same year and has not looked back.
Sport: Shooting
Born: 30 November 1989, Punjab
Event: 25m pistol
About Heena Sidhu:
A Dental student, Heena Sidhu has been a practicing shooter since 2006. She also made it to the junior team the same year and has not looked back ever since. ÂÂ
It was Imran Hasan Khan though who had won the Olympic quota in the 50m Rifle 3 Position category. Gagan Narang and Sanjeev Rajput, ranked higher than Imran, had also qualified for the Games. As per International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) rules, only two quotas were given to Indian in that category and thus Imran was denied a spot.
The Ludhiana girl gained from that loss as ISSF also allows one quota to be exchanged by another, subject to availability. 2004 Olympic medalist Rajyavardhan Rathore and Commonwealth Gold medalist Anisa Sayyed were other contenders for the spot. The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) though, chose Heena.
Imran, despite having won a quota, was left out as India have already reserved the maximum two slots in the 50m Rifle 3 Position category - that of Gagan Narang and Sanjeev Rajput, who are ranked higher than Imran and have also qualified for the Games.
As per ISSF rule, a country is allowed to exchange one quota won by its shooters with another, subject to its availability. The NRAI unanimously picked Sidhu over other contenders that included 2004 Olympics silver medallist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore and Anisa Sayyed, during the selection meeting in Rudrapur in February. The NRAI had sent its selected list of shooters, including Heena, for approval to the ISSF last month.
Heena has done well at the Asian Games in Guangzhou, China as well as the Commonwealth Games in India. Heena, along with Annu Raj Singh and Sonia Rai, grabbed a silver medal in the Women's 10m Air Pistol event. It was Annu Raj Singh again partnering Sidhu at the Commomwealth Games, 2010 but the medal colour changed to Gold. She also managed a silver in the singles event.
Passionate about guns since childhood, she has realised the dream that every athlete hopes for. What was a hobby to begin with has become her life. The Olympics just might be the stage to prove herself to the world.
Previous Olympics: None