In a sport of precision, Tilottama makes a seamless transition

Bengaluru: Tilottama Sen’s medal run this season has come with an unfamiliar ease. Ending 2025 as a National Champion, the Bengaluru teen ushered in the new year with an 11-medal haul, including six golds, in the just-concluded National Championships across two cities -- Bhopal and Delhi.

The podium finishes and the quiet comfort of mastering two disciplines suggest a shooter in control of her craft. But the calm comes after a turbulent pivot -- one born out of disappointment, fatigue and a conscious decision to fall back in love with the sport.

The turning point came after she missed out on Olympic selection in the 10m air rifle despite securing a quota for India, leaving a deep scar in her mind.

“It was quite overwhelming for me to go to the range and shoot 10m, especially,” Tilottama tells DH. “So, I just started 50m so that I could bring back that joy which I had.”

The heartbreak was shaped as much by policy as performance. For the second time in Indian shooting history, a quota winner was not automatically sent to the Games.

A revised selection process placed shooters through internal trials. "She missed it by a fraction, 0.25,” her father, Sujit Sen, recalls. “She was quite disappointed and stopped shooting for a month.”

What began as an emotional reset soon turned into a competitive revelation. That was also when the structure around her began to change.

After years of being effectively self-coached, analysing shot patterns on spreadsheets, studying elite shooters through YouTube and refining technique through trial and error, Sen finally brought a national coach into the picture.

“When I started observing her closely, I realised she was a quick learner,” says coach Manoj Kumar. “Especially with technical things, she would work on feedback and come back asking if it had improved. That tells you a lot about an athlete.”

Encouraged by Manoj, who noticed her aptitude even without structured training, Sen committed to the 50m three-position event.

“She was already very good at air rifle,” he says. “So I was confident she could pick up small-bore as well, and she picked it up very fast.”

The irony is that 50m was never part of the plan. Tilottama had spent the last five years as a 10m shooter, and the idea of switching disciplines never crossed her mind early on. However, the complexity of 50m with its constant transitions eventually drew her in.

“It is quite interesting because you have 3 different positions. And it's fun shooting .22!”

Her introduction to the event was anything but textbook. At her first major final, she didn't even know the changeover rules.

“My coach briefed me on how the timing works and told me that when I do my changeover time, it's very short. I just said okay and I’ll give my best,” she recalls.

Looking back, she laughs, “It was a bit crazy. But I’m happy I did it. I tried another event, and it's going well for me now.”

Equipment failures, unexpected disruptions, high-stakes finals – Sen meets them all with the same quiet composure.

Manoj noticed it immediately. “Even when her (iron) sight got stuck in the junior final, she didn’t panic,” he says. “Looking at Tilottama, I was a little uncomfortable as a coach, saying ‘make it fast!’

“But she managed to finish the series. Whatever is happening doesn't matter to her. She just goes as per her flow.”

He adds, “For a 17-year-old, that level of calm is very rare. She behaved like an experienced athlete.”

It's a mindset shaped as much by personality as by experience, reinforced early on by her idol Abhinav Bindra’s advice to her: “Don’t take a lot of pressure, just enjoy the sport.”

Looking ahead to LA 2028, Sen is clear-eyed. She wants consistency in both 10m and 50m, and possible team events, holding space for three gold medals in her collection.

For now, though, her metric remains simple: “Did I give my 100 per cent that day? And if it’s a yes, then no matter what score I shoot or what medal I win doesn't really matter.

“If it’s a yes, then I’m good to go.”

Sen has now been added to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), a move meant to ease the financial and logistical strains of elite preparation.

But the support hasn't matched expectations. Her father explains that she was placed in the development group rather than the core group, despite already having Olympic-level credentials.

Highlights - Equipment failures, unexpected disruptions, high-stakes finals – Sen meets them all with the same quiet composure.
Manoj noticed it immediately. “Even when her (iron) sight got stuck in the junior final, she didn’t panic,” he says. “Looking at Tilottama, I was a little uncomfortable as a coach, saying ‘make it fast!’
“But she managed to finish the series. Whatever is happening doesn't matter to her. She just goes as per her flow.”
He adds, “For a 17-year-old, that level of calm is very rare. She behaved like an experienced athlete.”
Sen has now been added to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), a move meant to ease the financial and logistical strains of elite preparation.
But the support hasn't matched expectations. Her father explains that she was placed in the development group rather than the core group, despite already having Olympic-level credentials.