India’s junior shooters will be in action for the first time this season as two medals are set to be decided in the women’s 10m air rifle and men’s 10m air pistol events when the ISSF Junior World Cup begins in Cairo on Tuesday.

India has sent a strong 71-member squad, with the first group of 58 athletes along with the support staff arriving in Cairo on Sunday. The opening day of the competition will feature the 25m pistol precision stage for both men and women, alongside skeet qualification rounds with 75 targets in both men’s and women’s categories.

In the women’s 10m air rifle event, India has fielded six shooters, led by Asian junior record holder and 2025 ISSF Suhl World Cup winner Shambhavi Kshirsagar. She will be joined by 2025 Asian champion in 50m rifle Anushka Thokur, 2026 New Delhi Asian Championships medallists Manyata Singh (silver) and Aneesha Sharma (bronze), 2024 Asian Championships bronze medallist Anvii Rathod, and Panaah Bhugra.

The men’s 10m air pistol event will also see six Indian shooters in action, led by former junior world champion and 2023 World Championship mixed team gold medallist Shiva Narwal, who returns to international competition after a three-year gap. He will be accompanied by Deaflympics 2025 champion Abhinav Deshwal, Abhinav Choudhary, Abhay Dhama, Himanshu Rana, and 17-year-old Chirag Sharma.

According to competition rules, a maximum of three shooters per country can advance to the final, with the top three from qualification making the cut.
Former World Championship and Junior World Championship medallist Sameer Gulia is the most prominent name in India’s 25m pistol squad.

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In the men’s section, Abhinav Choudhary, Sahil Choudhary, Sagnik Banerjee, Pranshu Suryavanshi and Bhanu Pratap Singh Shekhawat will compete for medals, while the women’s line-up includes Parisha Gupta, Anjali Mahendra Bhagwat, Agam Kaur Grewal, Manvi Jain, Sejal Kamble and Shikha Chaudhary.

In skeet, India will field five shooters in the men’s category and four in the women’s. The men’s team includes Zoarawar Singh Bedi, Harviraj Singh, Ishaan Singh Libra, Yashvardhan Singh Rajawat and Anjaneya Singh Mandawa, while the women’s team features Risham Kaur Guron, Parmeet Kaur, Agrima Kanwar and Sanyogita Shekhawat.

A total of 284 athletes from 25 countries are competing in Cairo, with India sending the largest contingent. Hosts Egypt have entered a 29-member squad, while Russia—competing under the Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN) banner—has fielded 43 shooters.

Other strong contingents include France (24 athletes), Great Britain (16) and Italy (13). With the Junior World Championships scheduled for June in Suhl, Germany, this event offers Indian shooters a key opportunity to test their form and strengthen their case for selection.