When the pressure was at its peak and the targets kept flying across the range in Almaty, Anant Jeet Singh Naruka stood tall.
The 26-year-old Indian shooter delivered one of the finest performances of his career, hitting 57 out of 60 targets to win the men’s skeet gold medal at the Asian Shooting Championships 2025. With this win, Naruka not only claimed his maiden senior Asian title but also secured India’s first gold medal of the tournament, adding a golden chapter to his personal journey and Indian shooting history. Naruka entered the finals carrying both experience and scars. In previous continental outings, he had been tantalizingly close to the top, settling for three silver medals at the Asian level, including a runner-up finish at the 2023 edition.
This time, however, he was determined to rewrite the script.
The final was no easy outing. Standing alongside him was Mansour Al Rashidi of Kuwait, a former Asian Games champion, part of a family name synonymous with skeet shooting across Asia. The Kuwaiti, himself a seasoned campaigner, had pushed Naruka in past encounters. But on this day, Naruka was immovable. With steady shoulders and unflinching rhythm, he shot down clay after clay, missing only three across the 60-target final. The result: 57 hits, enough to edge past Al Rashidi’s 56 in a thrilling finish.
The narrow margin underlined the razor-thin difference at the elite level, but it was Naruka’s composure that made the difference. Each miss could have easily unsettled him, yet he regrouped, corrected, and finished strong.
Redemption After Near Misses
For Naruka, this medal was about more than just numbers. It was redemption. He had experienced heartbreak before none more painful than the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023, where he shot a remarkable 58/60 in the final only to lose to Abdullah Al Rashidi, the 60-year-old Kuwaiti legend who produced a perfect 60/60 world-record equaling performance. On that day, Naruka’s silver was a score that would have secured gold on almost any other occasion.
That bitter memory lingered. But instead of breaking him, it became motivation. When he stepped onto the range in Almaty, he carried not just his gun and ammunition but also the determination to ensure history didn’t repeat itself. And this time, when the last target was hit, the wait was over. He was crowned Asian Champion.
India’s First Gold in 2025
Naruka’s victory was more than a personal triumph it was also a milestone for Indian shooting. The win gave India their first senior gold medal at the ongoing Asian Championships, where the contingent had so far collected one silver and four bronze medals. The women’s skeet team had earlier delivered a commendable bronze medal, while the men’s skeet team narrowly missed out on a podium finish, ending in fifth place. But Naruka’s individual brilliance ensured that the tricolour was raised highest in Almaty.
For a shooting powerhouse like India, where rifle and pistol often dominate the headlines, skeet and trap victories carry added significance. Naruka’s medal is a reminder of India’s growing depth in shotgun shooting disciplines, traditionally dominated by countries like Kuwait, Qatar, and China.
Born in 1998, the very year Abdullah Al Rashidi last won a world championship, Anant Jeet Singh Naruka has been around guns and ranges since his teens. Skeet, a discipline requiring lightning reflexes, calm under pressure, and split-second decision-making, suited his temperament. Over the years, he built a reputation for consistency, with strong showings at national and international meets. Yet, the label that often followed him was “the nearly man” at Asian events. Silver after silver proved his quality but also hinted at the elusive nature of the top step of the podium.
Now, at 26, he has broken that ceiling. The gold medal in Almaty is both a personal breakthrough and a stepping stone toward bigger goals, including the 2026 Asian Games and the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
Rivalry With the Al Rashidis
Any conversation about Asian skeet inevitably circles back to the Al Rashidi family of Kuwait. Abdullah Al Rashidi, the three-time world champion and double Olympic bronze medallist, has been the face of skeet shooting for decades. Even at 60, his 2023 Asian Games heroics reminded the world of his enduring excellence. Against such a backdrop, Naruka’s victory over Mansour Al Rashidi in Almaty carried symbolic weight. It was not just about one final but about India proving capable of matching and defeating the best in the business.
For Indian shooting fans, it also brought back memories of Naruka’s unlucky 2023 loss to Abdullah. The storyline almost felt poetic: from being denied by one Rashidi to finally overcoming another to claim gold.
Naruka’s 57/60 was not just a great score; it was a testament to his technical preparation. Skeet finals are grueling, requiring shooters to respond to targets released at varied speeds and angles. Fatigue, crowd noise, and the psychological pressure of elimination make the difference between champions and also-rans.
Naruka’s stance remained steady throughout, his timing immaculate. Each miss was followed by a reset — no visible frustration, no break in rhythm. That mental discipline, coupled with countless hours of training, defined his win. Even in the face of Al Rashidi’s late surge, Naruka refused to falter, holding his nerve to claim the title.
The medal tally after Naruka’s win stood at 1 gold, 1 silver, and 4 bronze, but the bigger story was the psychological boost his win gave to the Indian squad. It showed that Indian shooters can excel in shotgun disciplines at the highest Asian level something that bodes well for team morale and for future competitions. With the Olympics always the ultimate prize, the ability to win in pressure finals is invaluable. Naruka has now demonstrated that he can handle the spotlight, a quality that selectors and coaches will count on when planning India’s path to Paris 2028 and beyond.
India’s shooting system has long invested in rifle and pistol, producing Olympic medalists like Abhinav Bindra, Gagan Narang, and Manu Bhaker. Shotgun, however, has often lagged behind in terms of international medals. Naruka’s breakthrough might well be the start of a new era. His victory, combined with promising performances from other Indian skeet shooters in recent years, signals that India can no longer be seen as outsiders in the shotgun domain.
When the dust settled in Almaty, Anant Jeet Singh Naruka had finally stepped out of the shadow of near-misses and heartbreaks. His 57/60 gold medal-winning performance not only made him the Asian Champion but also secured India’s first senior gold at the 2025 Asian Shooting Championships.
For Naruka, it was redemption. For India, it was history. And for the sport of shooting, it was a reminder: champions aren’t defined only by their talent, but by their ability to rise again after setbacks. Naruka had done just that and in doing so, etched his name into the golden records of Indian shooting.
