Former national coach Sunny Thomas, who played a crucial role in revolutionising Indian shooting, passed away on Wednesday in Kottayam following a cardiac arrest. He was 85.
Thomas is survived by his wife KJ Josamma and three children — Manoj Sunny, Sanil Sunny, and Sonia Sunny.
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A recipient of the prestigious Dronacharya Award in 2001, Thomas’s leadership, mentorship, and administrative reforms helped Indian shooting rise to new levels and produced a generation of world-class shooters, including India’s first individual Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra.
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Thomas, who successfully transitioned from an English professor to one of India’s most impactful sports mentors during his stint from 1993 to 2012, was instrumental in shaping India’s golden era, including Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore’s silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics before mentoring Bindra to a groundbreaking gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The success continued at the 2012 London Olympics, where Vijay Kumar and Gagan Narang bagged silver and bronze, respectively, again under Thomas’s watch.
“Deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Prof Sunny Thomas. He was more than a coach, he was a mentor, guide and father figure to generations of Indian shooters. His belief in our potential and his relentless dedication to the sport laid the foundation for India’s rise in international shooting. He played a big role in my early years and I will always be grateful for his support and guidance,” Bindra posted on X.
During Thomas’ tenure, Indian shooters won 108 gold, 74 silver, and 53 bronze medals across various tournaments, including the Olympics, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, and World Championships.
A former national champion in the rifle open sight category and a five-time Kerala state champion, Thomas began his career in academics as a professor at St. Stephen’s College in Uzhavoor before shifting to full-time coaching.
Mourning his demise, NRAI president Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo described his passing as “a void which Indian Shooting will find very difficult to fill,” hailing his selfless contributions and legacy.
“This is a void which Indian Shooting will find very difficult to fill. Professor Thomas was an institution in Shooting and India would not have become the Shooting power that it is today, without his selfless contribution to our sport. The entire Shooting community is in grief, and on behalf of everyone at the NRAI, I send my heartfelt condolences to his loved ones,” he said.
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