Teen shooter Parth Mane, 18, appeared undaunted at his first Asian Games, as he helped India clinch a silver medal in the 10m air rifle team event (1890.1 points) in Aichi-Nagoya on Monday. A major reason for the youngster’s lack of nerves could be attributed to the simulation training he underwent during preparation at Arjuna Award-winning shooter Suma Shirur’s Lakshya Shooting Club at New Panvel and High-Performance Centre at Belapur.

“In preparation for the tournament, we focused on pressure-simulation training for Parth. So, we tried to mirror the conditions he would face at the Asian Games by having all our athletes and coaches stand behind him, screaming, clapping or even playing loud music. The idea was to create scenarios where he has to learn to perform and keep his focus despite plenty of distractions around him,” a proud Shirur — an Asian Games silver medallist in the 10m air rifle team event at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan — told mid-day on Monday.