Two-time World Championships gold medallist shooter Rudrankksh Patil had missed out on qualifying for the Paris Olympics by the barest of margins. He had received a quota earlier, but the selection trials didn’t go in his favour as he was kept in the reserve team of the Indian shooting contingent that flew to the French capital. Eight months later, Rudrankksh bounced back with a bang, winning gold in the men’s 10m air rifle event and silver with Arya Borse in the 10m air rifle mixed team event at the recent World Cup in Buenos Aires. In a chat with News18 Sports, the 21-year-old from Thane speaks about his partnership with Aarya, how the National Games is helping Indian athletes, the disappointment of missing a berth for Paris and more. Congratulations on your performance at the World Cup. How would you like to sum it up? Well, I’m very happy with my victories. I could win a gold and a silver for the nation. I’m happy that I was able to come over here, be the part of the Indian team and bring some home, some glory to the country. Tell us about your partnership with Aarya Borse. I think we go back to 2022, between Aarya and me. We had our first mixed team partnership in juniors. This is our first senior international tournament playing together, and we played at the National Games this year. We got a silver there again. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rudrankksh Patil (@r_patil16) I was quite happy that one of my fellow members and I could shoot together again. It was her first mixed team silver, and I was elated to be part of her journey and to help her win that medal. How do you, as an athlete, see the National Games and the exposure they provide? So, when it comes to the National Games, I’m quite happy that we have an overall national level tournament where we can compete together with one of the best in the nation. For us, it’s just another trial because the scores which we shoot during the National Games are considered for a national ranking, which allows us to be the part of the Indian team. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Gun For Glory (@gunforgloryin) So, for us, it’s a serious tournament, and we played with the same enthusiasm. The only difference is we get cash rewards for the National Games, and again, we can be a part of a much bigger contingent because we are not only representing shooting, but we are the part of the entire games, multiple sports, which are over there. You missed out on qualifying for the Paris Olympics by a whisker. How did you deal with it? For me, to be honest, the immediate reaction was that we were all sad. But being an athlete, we have realised that we have to move on and move ahead. The plan of action was to try and convince the NRAI how I can still perform well in Paris but the policy is already there and should be followed. And which I think is a very right decision. I was third for the Olympic trials and I was there in the reserve team for the Olympic Games, seeing that I came from quota winning perspective. It was not so good. But yeah, I was able to bring home many other medals other than the Olympic games, even in Asian Games and World Championships. Of course, I have to work hard again to make myself stronger, mentally and become technically sound so that I can in the next in this Olympic cycle, bring out the best in me. Has your preparation for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics already begun, or do you take it one season at a time? To be honest, it’s all a big part of a cycle, and I think the preparation has already begun. We don’t aim for any one tournament. We know that we have to focus on our personal growth. So, for example, for this World Cup, we did not train in any different way. We just trained in the way we usually do, and we know that that thing worked during the selection trial during the National Games. So, we have to just go and repeat those things during an international tournament, and if it works, then we have to mark it down on how it was done and try to repeat it as many times as we can. Where do you see yourself five years from now? Of course, I see myself in a lot of matches. I see myself winning a lot in the upcoming Olympic cycle. All the tournaments are repeated – Asian Games, World Championships and Olympic Games. So, I want to win them all, to be honest, and that’s what I’m working on. But I know if I focus on winning too much, then it will create unnecessary pressure. So, again, I would like to keep myself on the ground, and I would like to focus on my process.