Who Is Sift Kaur Samra, Asian Games 2023 Gold Medalist And Shooting World Record Holder?

Indian shooter Sift Kaur Samra won the gold medal in the individual women's 50m rifle 3 position event at the 2023 Asian Games on Wednesday, September 27. Giving her company on the podium was fellow Indian Ashi Chouksey. Inside the noisy Fuyang Yinhu Sports Centre in Hangzhou, Kaur shot a new world record score of 469.6 to finish ahead of Chinese opponent Zhang, who scored 462.3. Chouksey finished third with a score of 451.9. (Full Coverage | Day 4 Live | Medal Tally)

Earlier, Kaur and Chouksey along with Manini Kaushik had clinched the silver medal in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions team event. At the time of writing, shooters have bagged nine medals, including three gold.

So, who is World Record Scorer Sift Kaur Samra?

Sift Kaur Samra, 22, hails from Faridkhot in Punjab. Her father, Pawandeep Singh, is a farmer. Kaur was doing her MBBS from GGS Medical College. However, she was finding it difficult to manage shooting along with her studies. Also, the college did not support Samra at this time so she decided to quit medical studies and focus on shooting.

“I am not able to manage shooting with MBBS. Before coming here, I requested my college to hold separate exams for me, but they refused. They went on suggesting that I should repeat the first year,” Samra was quoted in The Times Of India, who is a student of Government GGS Medical College, Faridkot, Punjab.

Samra clinched two gold medals at the World University Games in Chengdu. She also bagged two bronze medals in the Shooting World Cup. Last year in the Junior World Cup, she won one gold medal, two silver and one bronze.

In an interview, Samra had said she had planned on quitting shooting last year. However, in the National Championship held in Bhopal, she created a national record that completely changed her mind to not quit shooting.