New Delhi, May 28 -- Veteran sports administrator and former India shooter Raja Randhir Singh passed away at his residence here on Wednesday after prolonged illness. He was 79. Singh is survived by wife Vinita and daughters Mahima, Sunaina and Rajeshwari. Born in 1946 into the royal family of the erstwhile Patiala state, Singh carved a name for himself as one of India's finest shooters. He became the first Indian to win an Asian Games gold in trap at the 1978 Bangkok Games. He also won silver in the team event and then an individual bronze at the 1982 Games in Delhi. He participated in five Olympics, from 1968 to 1984. Singh - his father Raja Bhalindra Singh too was a senior sports administrator and International Olympic Committee member - turned to sports administration as he was finishing as a shooter, playing a pivotal role in shaping India's Olympic movement during his nearly four-decade long association in various capacities in Indian and international sports bodies. Singh served as secretary general of the IOA from 1987 to 2012. He was secretary general of the Olympic Council of Asia from 1991 to 2015 and was its president (2024-2026), before stepping down early this year due to failing health. When OCA faced a governance crisis before the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, Singh was made acting president of the continental body to help oversee the Games. In 2024, he became the first Indian president of OCA at its General Assembly in New Delhi. Singh was IOC member from 2001 to 2014, and was later made an honorary member. With a gentle and affable personality, Singh was for long the international face of Indian sports administration. Tributes poured from the Indian sporting fraternity. "IOA is deeply saddened by the passing of Raja Randhir Singh.... His legacy within the Olympic movement and his unwavering service to athletes and the sporting fraternity will continue to guide everyone. The IOA extends its sincere condolences to his family, friends, colleagues, and the entire Olympic family," it said in a statement. National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) president Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo said his passing was an "irreplaceable loss, not only for the sport of shooting but for the entire Olympic sporting fraternity in India." "His record as an international shooter speaks for itself. As an administrator, Raja Randhir Singhji was a visionary and worked tirelessly for the development and growth of the Indian and Asian Olympic movements," he said. Beijing Olympics shooting champion Abhinav Bindra said, "Raja Randhir Singhji lived a life devoted to sport as an Olympian, as administrator, and as someone who contributed immensely to Indian and world sport. His legacy will remain an important part of our sporting history."...