NRAI retains Olympic Selection Trials for Los Angeles 2028; quota places do not guarantee selection
The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) on Sunday announced it will retain the Olympic Selection Trials (OST) format used for the Paris 2024 cycle to choose shooters for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, with new pistol and rifle criteria taking effect with the start of the ISSF World Championship in Doha on Sunday. The association said the selection process will remain in force until the Indian team for Los Angeles is chosen and that earning an Olympic quota does not by itself secure an athlete’s place on the team.
An NRAI official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the selection process would largely follow the previous Olympic cycle, with a few modifications. Selection will be determined by each shooter’s Final Average Score (FAS), calculated from the average of their three highest OST scores combined with applicable Quota Bonus Points (QBP). The NRAI reiterated the requirement that athletes compete in at least three of the four OSTs to be eligible for selection.
"Eligible athletes must participate in at least three of the four OSTs to be considered for selection (for 2028 LA Games). The FAS will be calculated only for athletes who have at least three OST scores. "If an athlete enters a trial but subsequently withdraws before completing it, for reasons known to the athlete, the athlete's score shall be treated as the exact arithmetic total standing at the point of withdrawal for selection purposes," the NRAI said in a statement.
The association kept the broader structure used in the Paris cycle, under which shotgun events and the rifle and pistol trials were staged to assess form against the nation's leading shooters; for Paris that process included trial stages in Delhi and Bhopal and the top six shooters in each event were included in the selection process. That system prompted legal challenges and athlete discontent when quota winners were unable to reproduce earlier performances in the trials and subsequently lost selection.
One cited example involved former world champion Rudrankksh Patil, who did not make the final Paris team after losing his place in the men's 10m air rifle selection to Sandeep Singh, who topped the NRAI selection trials. Singh went on to finish 12th at the Paris Olympics.
The NRAI also set eligibility conditions aligned with the ISSF qualification framework, stipulating that athletes must have competed in at least two ISSF championships — the ISSF World Championship, ISSF World Cups or Asian Championships offering quota places — between November 1, 2026, and April 30, 2028, in each individual event for which they seek entry at the Los Angeles Olympics.
"Under the NRAI's existing criteria, any Olympic quota place won by an Indian athlete belongs to the NRAI and the country. The athlete who wins a quota place will receive due consideration under this criterion, but winning a quota does not, by itself, guarantee that the athlete will represent India at the 2028 Olympic Games. "Quota winners, along with other qualified athletes, must participate in the selection trials in accordance with this criterion," the NRAI added.
The NRAI confirmed the revised pistol and rifle criteria come into force with the start of the ISSF World Championship in Doha on Sunday and will remain effective until the selection of the Indian team for the Los Angeles Olympics.