Who is Rakesh Nidagundi? From graphic design to Para Asian Games: How one creative order changed K’taka shooter’s career

Rakesh Nidagundi’s Asian Para Games debut didn’t go as planned as he finished seventh in the men’ 10m air rifle final event on Monday in Aichi-Nagoya. Having started on a strong note, Nidagundi lost his plot to finish a disappointing seventh with 141.5 points.

Earlier, in the qualification round, Nidagundi scored 619.3 to finish eighth and make it to the finals in his first-ever Games. But behind Nidagundi’s Asian Para Games journey is an interesting story.

Shooting wasn’t Nidagundi’s first choice. With polio affecting his legs since childhood, Nidagundi, who was born in Hubballi, started a career in graphic designing. Little did Nidagundi know that it would open a pathway for bigger opportunities for him and especially a career in sports.

Hailing from a middle-class agricultural family in Karnataka, Nidagundi completed Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts and also developed skills as a self-taught graphic designer, despite physical mobility challenges.

Rakesh Nidagundi’s turning point in 2017

It was in 2017, he got a creative order for a publishing material for a shooting academy in Hubballi. Ravichandra Balehosur, who was the coach at the academy, asked Nidagundi to try out the sport. But he didn’t give much importance to Balehosur’s advice.

Four years later, during COVID-19, Nidagundi decided to try out the sport after the lockdown relaxation in 2021. Since then it was no looking back for Nidagundi. His major breakthrough came at the Khelo India Games, where he won two medals and his life changed.

Nidagundi is a two-time National Champion and has accumulated 33 national medals comprising 14 Gold, 10 Silver and 9 Bronze. He has also represented India in multiple World Cups and currently trains at the Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range, New Delhi, as a Para NCOE athlete.

At the WSPS World Championships 2026 in Changwon, South Korea, he won a Team Silver Medal. For the Asian Para Games 2026 cycle, he recorded 615.8 in R1 at the Al Ain World Cup in November 2025, exceeding the Hangzhou sixth-place benchmark of 611.5.

Rakesh Nidagundi’s achievements

● WSPS World Championships 2026, Changwon – Team Silver Medal

● Two-time National Champion

● National medal tally – 33 Medals: 14 Gold, 10 Silver & 9 Bronze

● Represented India in multiple international World Cups

● Para NCOE athlete training at Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range, New Delhi