CHAUHAN Rajat

General
EARLY DAYS
When he was younger his parents sold gold ornaments and even the family car in order to buy him a bow to progress his career as an athlete. "Papa had to sell his second-hand Tata Indica in 2011 to buy a new compound bow because the one I possessed had stopped functioning properly. The bow had cost us around 1.5 lakh [150,000 rupees]. My father is a private lawyer and his income varies according to the number of clients he gets. Since he was the sole bread-winner in our family of five, we led a moderate life. Every saving had a dream to it. So, buying our first car was a sort of event for all of us. Selling it to buy a bow for me left me moved. It made me more serious towards what I was doing. It was a kind of responsibility, but I was up for the challenge. I am really thankful to my father that he pushed me to do something in life. Even though my future as an archer was not secure, he made sacrifices. It feels good that I could repay the faith he had in me." (timesofindia, 10 Jul 2020; kridangan, 08 Oct 2013; YouTube, 25 Feb 2012)

COACHING
In 2017 he began coaching Indian archer Priya Gurjar. The pair already knew each other as he is friends with Gurjar's father. "She started with my bow but that is not a special thing. We all have been helped when we started in this sport. It is important to help her become a mainstay and early indications are that she has the skill and talent to do that." (thebridge, 17 Jan 2023; tribuneindia, 18 Aug 2021)

He became the first archer representing India to win an individual medal at the world championships by claiming silver in the men's compound event at the 2015 edition of the tournament in Copenhagen, Denmark. (SportsDeskOnline, 27 Jun 2018; indianwomenblog, 19 Sep 2016; indianexpress, 05 Aug 2015)

After winning gold in the men's team compound event at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, Republic of Korea, he and his teammates Abhishek Verma and Sandeep Kumar became the first archers representing India to win a gold medal at the Asian Games. (SportsDeskOnline, 27 Jun 2018; indianwomenblog, 19 Sep 2016; indianexpress, 05 Aug 2015)