'Missed Jaspal sir a lot': Manu Bhaker gets emotional after opening ceremony

Manu Bhaker and Jaspal Rana (Image credit: Agencies)

Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker remembered her late coach Jaspal Rana after carrying the Indian flag at the Asian Games 2026 opening ceremony on Saturday.Bhaker said she missed Rana during the ceremony, making the special occasion an emotional one.

She carried the Indian flag alongside kabaddi star Pawan Sehrawat.

"Missed Jaspal sir a lot today, he was a flagbearer at the Asian Games. It was indeed an emotional day without his presence by my side," Bhaker said after the ceremony.

Rana played key role in Bhaker’s career

Rana, a former shooter and coach, died on June 11 at the age of 49. He played an important role in Bhaker’s career and guided her to two bronze medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.Bhaker had earlier spoken about Rana’s influence on her approach to opening ceremonies at multi-sport events.Rana had told Bhaker that she could attend such ceremonies only if she was the flag-bearer. Otherwise, he wanted her to watch them on television because her competitions usually started soon after the opening ceremony.

Rana’s advice made the moment more special

Bhaker is competing at her third Asian Games. She missed the opening ceremony at her first Games in 2018 as she was based in Palembang, away from the main athletes’ village in Jakarta.

She later attended the 2018 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony and recalled Rana’s advice to focus on her competition.

That advice made Saturday’s occasion even more emotional as Bhaker herself walked out as one of India’s flag-bearers at the Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium.

Bhaker’s focus now on shooting

Bhaker is the only athlete from independent India to win two medals at a single edition of the Olympics.She will now turn her attention to the shooting competition. She is scheduled to compete in the women’s 10m air pistol, women’s 25m pistol and 10m air pistol mixed team events.