Jaspal Rana is an Indian shooter and shooting coach known for winning gold medals at the 1994 Asian Games, 1998 Commonwealth Games, 2002 Commonwealth Games, and several other medals at different events.
Wiki/Biography
Jaspal Rana was born on Monday, 28 June 1976 (age 47 years; in 2023) in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand. His zodiac sign is Cancer. He completed his schooling at Kendriya Vidyalaya School, Air Force Station Camp Tigri Tuklakabad, New Delhi.
Physical appearance
Height: 5′ 7″
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Black
Family & Caste
Jaspal Rana belonged to a Rajput family.
Parents & Siblings
Jaspal’s father’s name is Narayan Singh Rana, and his mother’s name is Shyama Rana. His father is an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) officer. He has one brother, Subhash Rana, and one sister, Sushma Singh. Both his brothers are famous shooters. Sushma is married to Pankaj Singh, son of Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh.
Jaspal Rana with his mother, Shyama Rana
Jaspal Rana with his daughter, Devanshi Rana, and his brother, Subhash Rana
Pankaj Singh with Sushma Singh
Wife & Children
Jaspal Rana is married to Reena Rana, and together they have two children- Yuvraj Rana, and Devanshi Rana. Devanshi Rana followed his father’s footsteps and became a shooter for the Indian shooting team.
Jaspal Rana with his wife, Reena Rana
Jaspal Rana with his daughter, Devanshi Rana, and son, Yuvraj Rana
Career
Shooting Career
Jaspal Rana started his shooting career at a very early age. He was around 10 years old when his father introduced him to shooting sports. Narayan Rana is an ITBP officer, Jaspal is surrounded by teams and guns and he becomes interested in the sport. His father was his first coach and Jaspal started training with rifles and pistols, but he settled for pistols for his sport. At the age of 12, Jaspal made his national debut at the 31st National Shooting Championship held in Ahmedabad in 1988, and he won the silver medal in the competition. In 1994, he made his international debut at the 46th World Shooting Championships and set a record during the event in Milan, Italy. In the event, Jaspal set a record of 590 points in the 25 meter center pistol event. He achieved the same score again in 1995 in Coimbatore, and in 1997 in Bangalore during the national championship. After a record-breaking performance in 1994 in Milan, Jaspal Rana bagged the gold medal in the 1994 Asian Games held in Hiroshima. In 1994, he was awarded with the Arjuna Award, and in 1997, Jaspal received the Padma Shri for his consistent performances in various national and international events. Jaspal has several medals in his pocket including the gold medals he won in 1998, 2002, and 2006, Commonwealth Games.
Jaspal Rana during shooting practice in his early days
Political career
In 2006, Jaspal Rana joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to mark the beginning of his political career. In 2009, he contested the Lok Sabha election from Tehri district, but he lost the election to Vijay Bahuguna, the Congress candidate. Later, Jaspal Rana left the BJP and joined the Indian National Congress (INC) in 2012. He was an active member of the party and worked in Dehradun.
Controversy
- In 2019, Jaspal Rana found himself at the center of controversy when a case was filed against the government regarding the list of Dronacharya Awardees for the 2019 ceremony. The plea was filed by advocate Rahul Mehra who represented the association and had asked the court to ask the government to reconsider the list and added Jaspal Rana’s name to the list. Mehra was asked to withdraw the appeal as it was not filed by Jaspal Rana himself, who was then in Rio de Janerio with the team for the World Cup event. Mehra told the court that a copy of the vakalatnaama would be sent by Jaspal Rana on Monday. He told the court that Jaspal had trained several award-winning athletes like Manu Bhaker, Saurabh Chaudhary, Arjun Singh, Devanshi Rana, etc.
- In 2021, the Indian shooting team performed poorly in the 10 meter air pistol and mixed team shooting events. Raninder Singh, president of the National Rifle Association of India, went on record and said Jaspal Rana was a negative factor in the team. Indian Olympian Manu Bhaker also backed his statement and said Jaspal Rana was the reason behind his poor performance as he did not give him enough time during training sessions. Jaspal responded to this allegation during an interview and said-
Those who represent and run sports in this country should stop manipulating and blaming others. NRAI can blame me. Everyone can blame me. But is that all there is to it? Are they saying they have no role to play in India’s poor performance at the Olympics?”
- During the Tokyo Olympic qualifiers, Jaspal Rana suggested Chinki Yadav should be sent for the 25 meter pistol event and Manu should focus on the 10 meter event instead of participating in all events. Jaspal said-
Which shooters in the world compete in three different events? It’s an added burden on Manu and even if you take the scores from last year, Chinki beats Manu in almost every event in the 25 meter sport pistol. Yes, I support Chinki because as a coach, I can see the merits. Chinki deserved a place in the Olympic squad in the 25m sport pistol category, but we let him down. I can say this with certainty that had Manu only competed in the 10m air pistol and 10m mixed team events in Tokyo, he would have brought home a medal. An athlete needs to know where to focus and how to play to their strengths.”
- After a clash between the two, Jaspal and Manu parted ways a few months before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Manu complained that Jaspal, as a coach, did not pay close attention to him during training sessions. Things went too far when Jaspal Rana wore a t-shirt with a message on the back sent to him by Manu’s mother Sumedha. Jaspal Rana further added-
Unfortunately that kind of thing happens to people after doing so much for your sport. Yes, I did convey the message but if this message came from Manu’s mother, she has no right to criticize the national coach. I had to delete it for them to remember what they were doing. And please remember, I never put anyone’s name on the message (on my T-shirt).”
Jaspal Rana wears a white t-shirt with a message
medal
- Gold medal in the 1994 ISSF World Shooting Championships in Milan (25 m standard pistol) (junior)
Childhood images of Jaspal Rana
- Gold medal in the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima (25 m middle fire pistol)
- Bronze medal in the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima (25 m middle fire pistol team)
- Gold medal in the 1995 Asian Shooting Championships in Jakarta (25 m standard pistol)
- Silver medal in the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok (25 m middle pistol)
- Bronze medal in the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok (25 m middle fire pistol team)
- Bronze medal in the 2000 Asian Shooting Championships in Langkawi (25m center fire pistol)
- Gold medal in the 2002 Commonwealth Games (25 m standard pistol)
Jaspal Rana poses with his gold medal after the Commonwealth Games
- Gold medal in the 2006 Asian Games in Doha (25 m middle fire pistol team)
- Gold medal in the 2006 Asian Games in Doha (25 m standard pistol)
- Silver medal in the 2006 Asian Games in Doha (25 m standard pistol team)
Awards & Honors
- Padma Shri in 1997
Jaspal Rana received the Padma Shri award
- Dronacharya Award in 2020
Address
H. No 12, Village Manjhon, PS-Cantt, District Dehradun
Net worth
According to an affidavit submitted in 2009, Jaspal Rana’s net worth is Rs. 1.37 crores.
Assets/Property
movable
- Cash: Rs. 25,000
- Bank: Rs. 58.17 lakhs
- NSS, Postal Savings, etc.: Rs. 1 lakh
- Jewellery: Rs. 3.55 lakhs
- Others: Rs. 10.75 lakhs
immovable
- Agricultural Land: Rs. 23.95 lakhs
- Non Agricultural Land: Rs. 11.70 lakhs
- Building: Rs. 20 lakhs
- Others: Rs. 8 lakhs
Facts/Trivia
- The gold medal in Milan, Italy was a memorable victory for Jaspal Rana as he developed an abscess on his knee. He was in excruciating pain and was hospitalized with his trainer. Doctors suggested he skip the tournament and wait for surgery, but he decided to leave the hospital with the coach and participate in the World Shooting Championship event. He did not take any painkillers because he was unaware of the doping test guidelines and policies, and despite the pain, he participated in the event and bagged his first international medal in the junior division. He also set a junior world record in the 25-meter pistol shooting event. In an interview after the event, Jaspal told the events of the previous day and said-
As a shooter, all my achievements are unforgettable because of almost 16 years of wins and losses and many ups and downs but the 1994 Milan World Championships when I won gold with a world record (was special) because I was in the hospital the night before the match. competition because I had a boil on my knee and it was really bad. The doctor refused us to release me and my coach Sunny Thomas decided to run away from there because I wanted to shoot. We came back the next day and had surgery.”
- After the controversial nomination of the 2019 award, Jaspal Rana was honored with the Dronacharya award in 2020. The ceremony was held virtually in the presence of the President of India Ram Nath Kovind, and members of the Vigyan Bhawan due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Jaspal was delighted to receive the award as two of his students Manu Bhaker, and Saurabh Chaudhary also received the Arjuna Award in the same year. During the interview, Jaspal said-
What could be a prouder moment than this. This award does not belong to me or an individual, but it belongs to the entire team that has worked with me, the federation and my students.”
Virtual award ceremony for Dronacharya Award
- In 2016, Jaspal Rana’s father-in-law, AS Bisht, committed suicide. He shot himself at his residence in Delhi’s Sainik Farm area. Jaspal received a call from South Delhi police station Neb Sarai about the incident, and Jaspal and his wife, Reena reached Delhi as soon as possible. The cause of suicide is known to be the losses he faced in all his businesses. Police took the body for post-mortem and later handed it over to the family for final rites.
- Raised in a family of athletes, Jaspal Rana’s son Devanshi Rana also chose to be a shooter and he is a part of the Indian shooting team. He had helped India win the gold medal during the ISSF Junior World Cup in 2018 in Germany.
Devanshi Rana (3rd L to R) with teammates after winning the gold medal
- While Jaspal Rana is a coach for several junior and senior level players, he also runs his own sports and athletics institute in Dehradun. The name of the facility is Jaspal Rana Institute of Education and Technology and they offer training courses and theory courses for athletes and people willing to become physical education coaches and teachers.
Jaspal Rana Institute of Education & Technology
Categories: Biography
Source: SCHOOL TRANG DAI
