Indian shooter Swapnil Kusale made history on Thursday by securing a bronze medal in the 50m Rifle 3 positions event at the 2024 Paris Olympics, raising India’s medal count to three. Kusale stood on the podium alongside China’s Liu Yukun, who won gold, and Ukraine’s Serhiy Kulish, who took silver.
Following his achievement, Kusale, a travelling ticket examiner (TTE) for the Indian Railways, was promoted to Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Sports Cell in Mumbai. Central Railway’s chief public relations officer, Swapnil Nila, confirmed to PTI that Kusale’s promotion order had been issued.
However, this promotion is not a surprise for Kusale, who has been seeking it for nearly a decade. Kusale, who joined Central Railway in 2015, had not received a promotion despite his repeated requests. “He was very disappointed by the attitude of his office,” his coach, Deepali Deshpande, told in an interview. “He has been working with the Railways for the past nine years but was never considered for promotion,” the national daily quoted her as saying.
Renjith Maheshwari, assistant sports officer at Central Railway, refuted the coach’s claims that Kusale’s promotion was delayed. “We have spoken to the general manager and hopefully, he will get a double promotion in two days,” he said. “He was asked to report to the office before going to Paris to push his promotion file. Swapnil didn’t go to the office as he was busy training,” Deshpande added. After Kusale’s medal win, Central Railways issued a directive for his promotion on Thursday.
Meanwhile, colleagues at the Railways agreed that Kusale was hurt by the treatment from his seniors. “Whenever Swapnil asked about his promotion, he received rude replies, which hurt him more,” said a colleague anonymously.
Previously the first Indian to reach the event’s final, Kusale had consistently been in the top 5 before securing a medal in the final standing section of the event. In the qualification round, the 28-year-old shooter scored a total of 590, including 38 inner 10s (Xs), across three positions: 198 in kneeling, 197 in prone, and 195 in standing.
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