Exclusive: Olympic Finalist To Coach Of The Year, Suma Shirur Echoes Siraj's Mantra Of Self-Belief Says, 'Not Everyone Has Naturally'

From reaching the Olympic finals in Athens 2004 (becoming first Indian woman to reach Olympic final in shooting) to mentoring India’s next shooting stars and Suma Shirur has walked a journey of fierce discipline, quiet resilience, and unrelenting self-belief. Now crowned as the ‘Coach of the Year (Female)’ at the 2024 Indian Sports Honours, Shirur insists confidence isn’t an inborn gift it's earned. 

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Zee English Sports Desk Shirur emphasized the transformative power of self-belief, something she has cultivated over years of competition and coaching.

“I think self-belief is one of the most important traits that one needs to have in order to have success. And self-belief is something that we need to build over the years, So, it's not something that everyone might have naturally. It's something that we need to work," she said.

As an athlete who started shooting with limited resources, Shirur understands the internal battles that come with elite sport.

“I have battled my own, I have had my own battles with self-belief and self-doubt. But what I was surprised [about] is that even today, even with the top athletes, they still have those moments when they want to believe in themselves, but there’s a lot of self-doubt around them.”

Shirur’s experience has shaped her coaching philosophy, which focuses not just on technique, but the emotional and mental well-being of the athlete.

“Whatever I’ve learned through sport are also helping me in life. So, no matter what I do in life today, I think a lot of my feelings and values about self-belief are what my sport has taught me.”

Drawing inspiration from her earliest coach, she recalled a line that still motivates her:

“He would tell me, ‘You will have to become the Queen of Jhansi.’ He kind of conveyed to me… that you can do it, but you have to fight for it.”

Shirur’s Lakshya Shooting Club, founded in 2006, aims to instill that same belief in the next generation. Her dream is clear:

" Lakshya began with a dream to give back to the sport that gave me everything. I wanted a space where talent didn't go unnoticed and where every child had a fair shot, regardless of background. So, that was always my dream. I always felt that if I could make it to the Olympics, and I felt that India was so good. So, if we give every child a chance to shoot and to experience this sport, then we never know, maybe there are a lot more Olympians and Olympic medalists around who get this chance at making history. So, in the next five years, I envision Lakshya Shooting Club as a world-class high-performance." she said to Zee News English