‘I am disappointed but I need to move on,’ says Arjun Babuta after fourth place finish at Paris Olympics 2024

Indian shooter Arjun Babuta was disappointed after finishing fourth in the men’s 10m air rifle event final on Monday. However, Babuta admitted he needs to move on from the heartbroken miss. 

The 25-year-old from Chandigarh was well placed to finish on the podium but a 9.9 shot from him at the fag end, ended all of his hopes of winning the Olympic medal.

At one stage, Babuta was in contention for the Silver medal but could not get the scores he needed at stay in the medal race.

Croatian Miran Maricic and Swede Victor Lindgren won the Bronze and Silver medal respectively whereas 19-year-old Chinese Lihao Sheng clinched the Gold medal.

“Definitely, it was a huge mental fight. Whoever came here, is good. They are the best in the world, technically good. My preparation for the final was done accordingly. It’s not about today alone, I started it months ago. When the matches came closer, preparations gradually increased,” Babuta reflected.

He further added, “I fought and did well. I stayed in the present and followed the process. The margin was less. Infact, I was not aware about the margin a number of times because I was focused on the process. I wanted to stick to my technique, which would help take me to the podium.”

2008 Beijing Olympics Gold medallist Abhinav Bindra also took to social media to motivate Arjun Babuta.

“I spoke to him yesterday and today. He had come to the Games Village yesterday to meet everybody. He shared his views and we got to learn a lot. He asked us to stay in the present and I did the same today. We always try, it’s nothing new. However, when a senior gives us such learnings, the impact of that is different.

“I was taking in everything he was saying. After the final, I felt good when he told me that he too came fourth, so he knows the feeling. I might have cried today, but I need to move on. This will help me in future competitions too. It felt good to know that he has a lot of expectations from me,” Arjun Babuta revealed of his interactions with Bindra.

Babuta was seen in tears after finishing fourth in the final.