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Indian shooters competing in the Paris Olympics are reportedly made to manage with food items like dal and chawal at the Games village, whereas a majority of the other dishes are continental. read more
 "How a Pakistani restaurant is keeping Indian shooters going in Paris Olympics 2024")
Members of the Indian shooting team at the Paris Olympics are reportedly unhappy with the food served at the Games Village. AP
The Indian shooting contingent competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics are reportedly unhappy with the food that is being served at the Games Village and have switched to eating from a Pakistani restaurant to satisfy their needs for Indian food.
According to a report in The Tribune, the Indian shooters, who are based in Chateauroux, are made to manage with food items like dal and chawal at the Games village, whereas a majority of the other dishes are continental. The vegetarians, in fact, have hardly any choice at the Games Village, and a shooting team member could not believe the fact that the same container was being used for portions of chicken and beef.
Paris Olympics: News, schedule, medals tally and more
After doing a bit of online research, the team discovered a restaurant called Taj Mahal. The restaurant is being run by Atif Noman, who is from Pakistan. According to the report, some members of the trap team that includes Prithviraj Tondaiman, Rajeshwari Kumar and Shreyasi Singh, as well as a few rifle team members, have at least complete meal from that restaurant.
“I only eat vegetarian food on Saturdays and they don’t serve that in the Village. They have fish or eggs in their vegan spreads. Everything is so bland so we found this restaurant and it serves good food,” Prithviraj was quoted as saying by The Tribune.
“To be fair to the organisers, they do not have this concept of vegetarian and non-vegetarian food. So we found this place and everyone is flocking to this place. The other day, I found high performance director Dr Pierre Beauchamp and a few shooters there. Palak daal, chicken and fish biryani are what the team mostly orders. He has become a friend and sometimes we order before getting there,” added the 37 year-old.
Noman, who is from Punjab province in Pakistan, was welcoming towards the Indian contingent. “They have been coming here for a few days now. It feels good, Indians hai, zabaan apni hai, gup shup bhi ho jati hai isi bahane (We speak the same language and so we can chat also),” he told The Tribune.
“Who doesn’t miss Indian food? Whenever we go abroad we find such joints,” Suma Shirur, the Indian shooting team’s head coach, said.
The restaurant is not just popular among the people who stay inside the Games Village. Anant Singh, Shreyasi Singh’s personal coach, stays outside the Games Village since he does not have accreditation to stay inside, and he too was pleased with the quality of the food. “It is a small restaurant but serves good food,” he commented.
India’s first medal of the 2024 Paris Olympics came from shooter Manu Bhaker, as she won bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol shooting event.
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