Patil Rudrankksh Balasaheb

Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil (born 16 December 2003) is an Indian sport shooter specializing in the 10 m air rifle event. He won the 10 m air rifle gold at the 2022 Word Championships, becoming the second Indian world champion after Abhinav Bindra.

Early life Patil was born on 16 December 2003 in Thane, Maharashtra, India. Initially, he started with chess and football but later shifted to shooting. His father, Balasaheb Patil and mother, Hemangini Patil, encouraged him to take up shooting. He has completed his undergraduate degree from the University of Mumbai.

Career At the 2022 Asian Games at Hangzhou, Patil scored a world record score on way to winning India's first gold medal in the 10 m air pistol team event. He secured a 2024 Paris Olympics quota berth, after winning gold in the 10 m air rifle event at the 2022 World Championships in Cairo. Earlier in the 2022 Asian Championships in Daegu, he bagged first place in the 10m air rifle team event. To aid his preparations for Olympics, Gagan Narang, olympic medalist and vice-president of Indian Olympic Association (IOA) helped him get a sponsored gun from Walther, which was presented to him at a press conference in Pune.