Archers Tarundeep Rai and Rahul Banerjee (right) practise at Paljor Stadium in Gangtok on Monday. Picture by Prabin Khaling

Gangtok, Aug 22: Ace archers Tarundeep Rai and Rahul Banerjee are undergoing a five-day training in Gangtok to acclimatise to the weather condition in London where the 2012 Olympics will be held.

The archers hope the training at high altitudes will come in handy if they qualify for the London Olympics.

The camp at Paljor Stadium started on August 19 and will end tomorrow.

“I and my national team partner Rahul have come here for a short camp. The training started on August 19 and is a part of our preparations for London Olympics as the British capital and Sikkim have similar weather. Temperature in European countries is around 25-30 degrees Celsius like here. The training here will help us practise in different wind conditions as well,” said Tarundeep.

The archer is from Sikkim and won silver medal in the Asian Games in China last year. He had received Arjuna award in 2006 for his contributions in the sport.

The camp is being sponsored by Olympic Gold Quest, a New Delhi-based NGO.

Rahul also found the Gangtok training to be of immense help as far as the acclimatisation was concerned.

“Weather in Gangtok is good and I am really enjoying it. The weather conditions in Sikkim are similar to those in Europe,” said Rahul.

But both the sportspersons have to cross at least two hurdles to make it to the Olympics.

“We have to take part in national trials in March next year where only top three archers will be selected for the Olympics. The trials will see the participation of around 100 to 120 archers, of whom 16 will be chosen for another contest. Finally, only three will make it to the national team,” said Tarundeep.

The second test for the three is the Olympic qualifier to be held in the USA in June.

“If the Indian team is selected, they can take part in the London Olympics. Our focus is also on the national qualifier,” said Tarundeep.

Rahul said the national trials would be the immediate challenge before them.

“All national players are very good these days. So, the selection will be very tough,” said Rahul.

The archer from Calcutta has been chosen for this year’s Arjuna award and won gold in the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

Rain and the limited use of the soccer stadium were source of minor problems the Olympics hopefuls faced during the training. “The training was okay despite the rain. Fortunately, the weather has cleared up in the past few days. But as the stadium is for football, we can’t train for 9-10 hours a day as we need to. If there is a specific archery ground in Sikkim, even the national team can practise in the cold climate,” said Tarundeep.

The duo had to don the role of coach also at the camp.

Four upcoming archers from Sikkim — Yogesh Limboo, Bhupen Rai, Pema Ongyel Bhutia and Tinley Gyatso Bhutia — trained alongside the national icons and honed their skills.

“We are sharing our technical knowledge with the boys. It will help them improve their skills. The boys knew the basic techniques and we are telling them how to develop endurance as it is very vital in the archery,” said Tarundeep.

Rahul, who will be the seventh archer to receive the Arjuna award on August 29, said: “Arjuna award is a great honour for any sportsperson in the country. Although I have achieved many awards in the past four years, Arjuna will be the most memorable for me.”