See what I mean about theorising? Shooting provides the space for amateurs like me to rationalise what more sensible folks would term a game of nerves and luck.

Tailpiece: The impulse to improvise, it appears, is rampant around the shooting ranges. Later in the day we watch Manavjit Singh Sandhu and Mansher Singh negotiate the first three rounds in trap qualification. (They place 12th and 21st respectively, with the last two rounds on Sunday.) Green hills provide a calming backdrop to the boom of ammunition, and up on the left sits a small, traditional structure.

What is it, we ask the volunteer, who as you will realise why pleads that he not be named. He mutters something about finding out, but returns with no information. What is it, we demand again, turning into typical tourists seeking the exotic in everyday structures, it must be a temple.

Why yes, it is, he smiles, let me tell you a story. There was a famous warrior, and it is a memorial to him... Then, he utters the give-away phrase, once upon a time. Instantly we know, and he concedes, that he is making it all up.