Mairaj Ahmad Khan, India's first Olympic skeet shooter, continues to defy age and adversity at 51, carrying a philosophy as precise as his aim: stay present, trust the process, and take one target at a time. Speaking from New Delhi, the veteran shooter outlined the mindset that has sustained a career spanning more than three decades.

A Pioneer's Journey

Mairaj's path to the skeet range was far from linear. He began as an under-12 three-position rifle shooter, drawn to firearms through early childhood exposure. A break for studies and cricket followed before he returned to competitive shooting in 1994 as a shotgun competitor. By 2000, he had narrowed his focus entirely to skeet — a decision that would reshape Indian shooting history.

He became the first Indian skeet shooter to qualify for the Olympics, making his debut at Rio 2016 and returning for Tokyo 2020, held in 2021. Along the way, he claimed India's first skeet World Cup medal — a silver at the 2016 ISSF World Shooting Championships in Rio — and then went one better in 2022, winning India's first individual ISSF World Cup gold in men's skeet, in Korea.

The Comeback That Almost Did Not Happen

The 2022 gold was not just a sporting milestone — it was a personal resurrection. The death of his father, the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the withdrawal of sponsorship support had pushed Mairaj to the edge of retirement. 'I realised that maybe this is the time to say thank you to the sport,' he recalled. Yet the competitive instinct held. He self-funded his return, travelled to Korea, and won gold — a result that silenced doubts about his relevance at the elite level.

Notably, this comeback arc mirrors a broader pattern in Indian shooting: individual resilience filling the gaps left by inconsistent institutional support, a tension the sport's administrators have yet to fully resolve.

Paris Missed, Los Angeles in Sight

Mairaj did not qualify for Paris 2024, a setback he acknowledges without bitterness. His sights are firmly set on Los Angeles 2028. 'I didn't qualify for Paris, but I never give up and I'm focussing more towards LA. Maybe the ultimate dream comes true in LA only, you never know,' he said. At 51, a third Olympic appearance would make him one of the oldest Indian athletes to compete at the Games.

The Philosophy Behind the Longevity

When asked about sustaining elite performance across four decades, Mairaj is characteristically understated. 'I never go in the future. I always stay in the present. I take one day at a time. I take one target at a time. This is my longevity secret,' he said. With an Asian Games cycle also approaching, he refuses to set medal predictions. 'My goal is always one target at a time. I can't tell you that I will shoot a gold medal or I will shoot a silver medal. Whatever comes, you have to accept and move on. I will give my best. That's my ability. That's my hard work.'

For Indian shooting, Mairaj Ahmad Khan remains both a record-holder and a reference point — proof that the sport's ceiling in skeet is still being tested.