Parth Rakesh Mane wins 10m air rifle team silver for India at Asian Games
Parth Rakesh Mane, an 18-year-old, secured a silver medal in the men’s 10m air rifle team event for India at the Asian Games in Nagoya on September 21, 2026, partnering with Himanshu Dhillon and Rudrankksh Patil. The medal came on Mane’s Asian Games debut and represented his first senior medal in international competition.
Mane arrived on the senior continental stage after success at junior level, including golds at the junior World Championships, and his transition to senior events has been driven by a family move and a change of coach. His parents relocated from Solapur to Mumbai after his father was transferred in 2021 so Mane could train under former Olympian Suma Shirur at her shooting club, and he now lives at Shirur’s residential facility roughly 20 minutes from the range.
Mane narrowly missed out on the individual final after finishing outside the top eight in qualification, while teammates Himanshu Dhillon and Rudrankksh Patil advanced to the individual final. Reflecting on that round, he said: "In the last series or in the last few shots, I got that confidence about my process and everything." He described the experience as learning and preparation for bigger stages.
In the team event Mane combined with Dhillon and Rudrankksh to earn India the silver, adding to the country’s shooting medal tally on a day of strong results for the squad. Mane said of the achievement: "It is a special moment for me and a special medal, of course, as it is my first senior medal in an international competition," and added that it was both a good experience and a learning opportunity: "It is a special medal and a good experience and good learning also."
Mane has spoken openly about the difficulty of moving from junior ranks to the senior level, saying: "Initially it was not easy for me to participate in the senior events because of the competition and the scores were too high." He and his coach focused on fundamentals to build consistency; as Mane put it, "We worked really hard, we worked on my process, we fine-tuned everything, my position and my process."
His introduction to shooting came at age 13 when his father took him to a summer camp in Solapur, and Mane recalled the attraction of the sport: "I just loved the environment of the range. I just loved the peace that shooting gives me. I saw that opportunity that I can represent my country at an international stage." He credited his family’s support for enabling his training and studies: "My family has been so nice, so supportive from the beginning of my career," noting, "My father transferred his job to Bombay, where I train right now. So, it’s been great support from my family." He has also completed his Class 12 education.
Mane stated his long-term commitment to the sport and his ambitions, saying: "This is something that I would do for the rest of my professional career. Because I have the opportunity to represent my country, it is what I wanted from the beginning." When asked about an Olympic gold in Los Angeles, he replied simply: "Definitely," and added: "Definitely, I have come into the big league…but I am still working on my process, still working on my mindset. I will get there for sure."
Mane has identified the World Championships in Qatar, where a quota place will be at stake, as his immediate target, and he faces another match on Tuesday (September 22) with little time to dwell on his first major senior medal.