Coach vs Coach: Mansher, Khaled in spat at the range
Vinayak Padmadeo
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 15
Another day, another fracas at Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range. Mansher Singh, the chief coach of the Indian shotgun team, and Khaled Al Mudaf, private coach of Vivaan Kapoor, were involved in an ugly spat during training today.
The 17-year-old Vivaan won the junior gold medal in trap competition at the Asian Shooting Championships in Doha in November last year. Coincidentally, Vivaan used to train under Mansher.
Sources claim that Mansher spotted Khaled in the field of play and asked the foreign coach to leave the area. This lead to heated arguments between the two former shooters.
It is alleged that Khaled, a former world champion in trap, flipped the finger at the Indian coach and was also ‘abusive’. Mansher then asked the Kuwaiti national for relevant papers to show that he was allowed to train Vivaan at a Sports Authority of India (SAI) facility.
“I have to go as per SAI regulations on the matter but his behaviour was utterly rude and demeaning towards me. It was a big letdown,” Mansher told The Tribune. “Anyway, I left soon after and they carried on their training.” Khaled, meanwhile, said he would make a comment at an appropriate time.
Foreign coaches are barred from attending the national camps as per the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) policies. However, no camp is currently underway at the range. Both NRAI president Raninder Singh and Mansher cited an SAI order that makes Mansher and NRAI responsible for a foreign coach being at the range.
SAI had said that the responsibility of the foreign coach “will be borne by the NRAI and the coach Mansher Singh in connection to all norms and rules of MHA/MEA, being foreign citizen” when SAI permitted Daniel di Spigno to train Bhowneesh Mendiratta and Shreyasi Singh last year in October.
