Paris Olympics double medallist Manu Bhaker ended her Asian Games 2026 campaign without a medal across four shooting events. After losing coach Jaspal Rana earlier this year, Bhaker will regroup for upcoming events with Jelena Arunovic.
The Paris Olympics double medalist Manu Bhaker has ended her campaign without winning a single medal across four shooting events at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya. On Monday, the 24-year-old had yet another heartbreaking exit from the women’s 25m pistol individual and team events.
At Aichi Prefectural General Shooting Gallery, Manu Bhaker finished 11th in the qualification with a score of 579, missing out on a spot in the individual final. Earlier, Bhaker, alongside Rani Sarnobat and Esha Singh, reached the final of the women’s 25m pistol team event, but India finished fifth in the team standings with a combined score of 1,727, concluding a gruelling campaign for pre-event favourites.
In shooting so far, India has won 12 medals, including a gold, seven silver, and four bronze, highlighting a productive campaign for the wider contingent even as Bhaker searched in vain for her peak form.
Also Read: Asian Games 2026: Esha Singh wins silver in women’s 25m pistol event
Manu Bhaker’s Shock Medal-Less Campaign
Ahead of the Asian Games 2026, Manu Bhaker was one of the favourites to win medals for India in shooting, alongside Esha Singh, Elavenil Valarivan, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Patil, and Himanshu Dhillon in individual events, but the shooting phenom’s uncharacteristic slump left her completely shut out of the podium.
Having won her maiden Asian Games gold medal in women’s 25m pistol in the 2022 Hangzhou Games and two gold medals and a silver at the 2026 Asian Shooting Championships in New Delhi, Bhaker was touted as a clear favorite to replicate her global success. It was expected of the two-time Paris Olympics medallist to lead the charge, given her recent success at the international stage.
However, Manu Bhaker found herself struggling to maintain consistency across all four events, with her campaign ending without a medal l despite entering the Games as one of India’s leading shooting contenders.
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Across four shooting events, Manu Bhaker reached the final in the women’s 10m air pistol individual discipline, alongside appearances in the women’s 10m and 25m air pistol team events as well as the 25m individual qualification, yet uncharacteristically finished outside the podium in every single outing.
The Haryana shooter found herself unable to find her rhythm when it mattered most, wrapping up an uncharacteristic outing that left the Indian camp searching for answers.
Did Jaspal Rana’s Absence Impact Bhaker’s Performance?
Manu Bhaker’s participation at the 2026 Asian Games held profound emotional significance. The Indian shooting star made her first multi-sport event appearance following the sudden passing of her long-time coach, Jaspal Rana. Rana passed away due to cardiac arrest in June this year.
Bhaker and Rana’s association was instrumental in defining her career. Under the guidance of four-time Asian Games medallist, Manu Bhaker clinched two medals, bronze in the women’s 10m and 25m pistol individual events at the Paris Olympics 2024, a historic redemption from her Tokyo 2020 heartbreak.
Earlier during her Asian Games 2026 campaign, Bhaker recalled how deeply she and her late mentor had looked forward to competing in Japan, noting that his constant emphasis on trusting the process remained her guiding light through an emotionally taxing week in Nagoya.
“I remember what he said, not once or twice, but all the time. It just stays with you. When a person has been a big part of your life, it just stays. It’s very natural,” Bhaker said after finishing fifth in the women’s 10m air pistol final.
“Of all the things he said, what I remember the most is about the process. He was just so adamant about the process — that at any given point in your life, you have to be able to give your best performance and follow your process,” she added.
Jaspal Rana’s sudden demise has apparently left an unfillable void in Manu Bhaker’s corner, turning her campaign at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games into one defined as much by emotional resilience as by athletic pursuit.
Also Read: Asian Games: Manu Bhaker’s father questions poor organisation in Japan
What Next for Manu Bhaker after Asian Games 2026?
Manu Bhaker has had an emotionally taxing couple of weeks at the Asian Games 2026, not only because of her medal-less run but also due to the heavy weight of competing at the major international sporting event without her late mentor and coach, Jaspal Rana.
As the continental showcase in Aichi-Nagoya draws to a close, the 24-year-old double Olympic medallist will likely take a much-needed period of rest and reflection to process the emotional toll of the past few months. Considering her performance across four events, Manu Bhaker will look to regroup and bounce back stronger.
Jelena Arunovic, a Serbian pistol expert, is currently serving as Manu’s coach, provided by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), in order to through the transition following Jaspal Rana’s passing and ensure she receives top-tier technical support for international competitions.
Manu Bhaker’s next major assignment is the World Cup in Cairo, Egypt, from October 8 to 14, followed by the ISSF World Championship Rifle/Pistol in Doha, Qatar, from November 1 to 14, offering her an immediate chance to rebound on the global stage and begin building toward the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic cycle.