Shooting: Swapnil Kusale, Sarabjot Singh to spearhead India at ISSF World Cup

New Delhi: Olympic bronze medallists Swapnil Suresh Kusale and Sarabjot Singh will lead a 24-member Indian contingent at the ISSF World Cup Rifle/Pistol in Cairo, Egypt. The international event is being held from October 8 to October 16, 2026.

The squad travelled to Cairo after completing an intensive national camp in Dehradun. The camp was held from October 1 to October 7, 2026, at the Maharana Pratap Sports College. Shooters spent the week working on match simulations and fine-tuning technical routines.

India will compete across eight individual Olympic disciplines and two mixed team events. The contingent combines seasoned Olympians with promising young shooters.

Swapnil Kusale headlines the Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions squad alongside Akhil Sheoran and Adriyan Karmakar. Olympian Arjun Babuta leads the Men's 10m Air Rifle unit alongside Deaflympics champion Dhanush Srikanth and Paarth Makhija. Babuta won silver at the 2026 Asian Shooting Championships in New Delhi.

In the women's rifle events, two-time Olympian Anjum Moudgil anchors the 50m Rifle 3 Positions team with Ayushi Podder and Manini Kaushik. Emerging shooter Arya Rajesh Borse, who won silver at the Buenos Aires World Cup, features in the Women's 10m Air Rifle alongside Khyati Chaudhary and Ismita Bhowal.

In the men's pistol section, Paris 2024 bronze medallist Sarabjot Singh will spearhead the Men's 10m Air Pistol line-up alongside Ajendra Singh Chauhan and Udhayveer Sidhu. Vijayveer Sidhu will lead the challenge in the 25m Rapid Fire Pistol alongside Suraj Sharma and Ankur Goel.

The women's pistol unit features Asian Games champion Palak, who will contest the Women's 10m Air Pistol alongside Muskan and Surbhi Rao. Olympian Rhythm Sangwan, former World Cup gold medallist Chinki Yadav and Divya TS form the line-up in the Women's 25m Sports Pistol.

Following official pre-event training and technical meetings today, competitive firing begins on Saturday.

The opening day features finals in both the 10m air pistol mixed team and the 10m air rifle mixed team competitions. Ajendra Singh Chauhan will partner Palak, while Udhayveer Sidhu teams up with Muskan in the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team event. Paarth Makhija and Arya Rajesh Borse, alongside Dhanush Srikanth and Khyati Chaudhary, will contest the 10m air rifle mixed team event.

Individual qualification rounds and finals across the 10m, 25m and 50m ranges will continue through 15 October 2026.

Indian Squad for ISSF World Cup Cairo 2026:

10m Air Rifle Men: Paarth Makhija, Dhanush Srikanth, and Arjun Babuta

10m Air Rifle Women: Arya Rajesh Borse, Khyati Chaudhary, Ismita Bhowal

50m Rifle 3 Positions Men: Akhil Sheoran, Adriyan Karmakar, Swapnil Suresh Kusale

50m Rifle 3 Positions Women: Anjum Moudgil, Ayushi Podder, Manini Kaushik

10m Air Pistol Men: Sarabjot Singh, Ajendra Singh Chauhan, and Udhayveer Sidhu

10m Air Pistol Women: Palak, Muskan, Surbhi Rao

25m Rapid Fire Pistol Men: Suraj Sharma, Vijayveer Sidhu, Ankur Goel

25m Sports Pistol Women: Divya TS, Rhythm Sangwan, and Chinki Yadav

10m Air Rifle Mixed Team: Paarth Makhija and Arya Rajesh Borse; Dhanush Srikanth and Khyati Chaudhary

10m Air Pistol Mixed Team: Ajendra Singh Chauhan and Palak; Udhayveer Sidhu and Muskan

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