Two decades ago, when Indian shooting was still searching for global recognition and consistent success, one platform quietly began charting a course that would run parallel to the sport’s meteoric rise. indianshooting.com started in 2005 as a niche effort to provide coverage to an underrepresented sport, and has now become an integral part of India’s shooting ecosystem.
Founded by Shimon Sharif, a former shooter, indianshooting.com is not just a website, it is a mission. Long before mainstream media gave shooting its due, the platform was telling stories of India’s shooters — celebrating their highs, analyzing the lows, and offering insight that no one else dared to explore.
Reflecting 20 years of innovation, resilience, and a relentless commitment to elevating the sport, indianshooting.com has grown into a cornerstone of India’s shooting community.
“The idea of a shooting website first struck me after I came back from competing in the Changwon World Cup in 2003,” said Sharif. In 2004, when Rajyavardhan Rathore won India’s first individual Olympic silver medal at the Athens Games, interest in shooting began to grow.
“Our sport needed a website, and I gave it one. I tried to load it with as much information as possible. Within days, emails started pouring in from all corners of the country. Everyone wanted to know more about our sport,” Sharif recalled.
Sharif, who first made his mark in competitive shooting in 1995, recognized early on that India’s shooting scene lacked a centralized digital presence. At a time when the internet was still finding its footing in India, he took a bold step by launching indianshooting.com to bridge the gap.
The website quickly gained recognition, earning a place in the Limca Book of Records as the nation’s first of its kind. On April 5, 2005, the website was officially inaugurated by Rathore at an event attended by members of the Indian shooting team and National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) officials.
The website’s true test came during the COVID-19 pandemic. With ranges closed and competitions halted, Sharif leveraged indianshooting.com to pioneer a new frontier: Online shooting. The platform hosted multiple editions of the International Online Shooting Championship and a month-long Online Shooting League. These virtual tournaments, streamed to thousands, featured top shooters from around the world and kept the sport’s spirit alive. “It was a lifeline for the community,” said Sharif, who turned a crisis into an opportunity.
Today, indianshooting.com stands as a testament to Sharif’s vision. With India’s recent successes at the Paris Olympics, the site has become a go-to platform for tracking the nation’s rising stars.
Despite the journey of two decades, Sharif remains humble and upbeat. “Twenty years ago, this was a dream to unite the shooting community. Now, it’s a launchpad for India to dominate the sport globally.”
As indianshooting.com enters its third decade, its legacy is undeniable: A digital pioneer that mirrored and fuelled India’s rise in shooting, thanks to Sharif’s foresight and steadfast commitment.