Hours after claiming India's third medal at Paris Olympic Games 2024, shooter Swapnil Kusale was promoted as officer on special duty by the Central Railway. Kusale had been working as a travelling ticket examiner for the railways for the last nine years, and his request for promotion was reportedly denied earlier. (Medal Table | Schedule & Results | Full Coverage)
"He was very disappointed by the attitude of his office," a Times of India report quoted Kusale's coach Deepali Deshpande as saying. "He has been working with the Railways for the past nine years but was never considered for promotion."
But Renjith Maheshwari, assistant sports officer at Central Railway, refuted the coach’s claims as per the report. "We have spoken to the general manager and hopefully, he will get a double promotion in two days," the report quoted him as saying.
Sure enough, the promotion did materialize, but only after Kusale clinched bronze medal in the 50m rifle 3 positions event. The 28-year-old Kusale hails from Kolhapur and won gold medals at the Asian Games in Hanzghou in 2023, in the World Cup in Baku in 2022 and in New Delhi in 2021.
The TOI report cited Kusale’s colleagues at the Railways, who said he was hurt by the treatment from his seniors. "Whenever Swapnil asked about his promotion, he received rude replies, which hurt him more," said a colleague anonymously.
"He was asked to report to the office before going to Paris to push his promotion file. Swapnil didn't go to the office as he was busy training," Deshpande added in the report.
