Bengaluru shooter Tilottama Sen takes Asian Games team silver

Tilottama Sen had barely learnt that India had won silver before she had to return to competition for the individual final.

The 18-year-old Bengaluru shooter teamed up with Vidarsa Vinod and Ashi Chouksey for the women’s 50m rifle 3-positions team event at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, earning her first medal at a continental competition. Sen then finished fourth in the individual final.

“We were excited, but we didn’t really get the time to celebrate because I had my final immediately after that,” Sen said. “It was great to win a medal in my debut Asian Games.”

Sen said she had approached the Games with the aim of applying lessons from her previous two international competitions rather than treating expectations from herself and her parents as pressure. After the individual final, she discussed her performance with her coach and identified areas to improve before her next event.

She also said young athletes are reaching elite competitions earlier because of better access to facilities and opportunities, alongside a desire to achieve more.