IndianShooting Interview/Abhinav Bindra

"Golden boy's gold turns one"

Golden boy- Abhinav Bindra

10 August 2009. Time flies, or so it seems. It seems only yesterday that India’s rifle ace Abhinav Bindra, hands holding the Beijing Olympic Games gold medal, stood on the podium with his eyes warily inspecting the 10m range.

August 11, 2008 will remain etched in the history of Indian sports because that was the day when an Indian showed the world that they could also corner glory on the world stage.

A couple of days later wrestler Sushil Kumar and boxer Vijender too bagged bronze medals at the Olympics. Looking back, their exploits look nothing more than sideshows to the grand spectacle that Bindra unfolded on that bedazzling day.

Indianshooting.com gets up close and personal with the champion on the first anniversary of Bindra’s exploits and asks him how his life has changed post-Beijing.

Excerpts:

What have you done to promote shooting sports after your Beijing win?

To be able to promote the sport of shooting in the country, we need to take it to the masses. And that can only be done if the equipment is readily available. The good quality guns that are available are very expensive and cannot be afforded by all. In fact the guns have to be specially imported, which every shooting enthusiast is not willing to do. Keeping this in view, Walther – the brand of guns that I use, developed a very good quality gun especially for the Indian market, using materials which aren’t very expensive. This gun will be marketed at a very affordable price. Unfortunately, the archaic laws of our country do not permit us to import and market them at this point of time. We are hoping that these laws become friendly towards the sport in order to give it a boost.

How do people react to you now?

Wherever I go, I have people coming to me to congratulate and thank me for what I have achieved and accomplished for the country. It’s overwhelming and I am eternally grateful to everybody who has expressed his happiness.

Can you tell us one or two very interesting moments after winning the Olympic gold?

Nothing can be more interesting or cherished than the moment the country and all Indians had waited for since the year 1900 – when India participated in the Olympics for the first time. I had won the Gold after shooting 10.8 and for the first time ever an Indian was to be on the top of the podium for receiving the Gold Medal while “Jana Gana Mana” was being played, for an individual achievement. That proud moment was the culmination of all my efforts, my dreams and the hopes of 1.2 billion Indians, which will be forever imprinted in my memory as if it happened just yesterday.

When do you plan to come back into competitions?

For 15 years I had worked towards one goal with a single minded dedication – to get that elusive gold for the country and for myself. I had this need to prove to myself that I can achieve the ultimate and be the best in the world. I had already proved that to myself after winning the World Championships at Zagreb in 2006 and the No 1 finish at Beijing further reaffirmed my faith in my capabilities and determination. I have taken this sabbatical from competition but definitely not from the sport, to reset my goals, recharge my batteries and come back with a renewed vigour and zest to achieve results that are better than before.

Will you be shooting the 2010 Commonwealth Games?

It would be wonderful to be able to compete!

Will you be shooting the other rifle events as well?

Maybe the 50 metres Rifle 3 Position. I still have to decide on this.

How is training going, heard you shot a perfect 600 in training recently?

Yes, I have started training again. Yes I did and am in good shape.

Who is coaching you now?

Gaby Buehlmann, Dr. Uwe Reisterer besides I have a team of mental & physical trainers assisting me.

You also wrote a book on shooting, how did it do?

Yes, I have co authored a book “Ways of the Rifle” with my coach Gaby Bühlmann, Heinz Reinkemeier, Maik Eckhardt, Bill Murray and Mike Hecker. It is the world’s most successful sport-rifle book and the latest edition has been updated to carry pictures upto the 2008 Beijing Olympics and new chapters have been added to cover the development in the sport. This book is a must read for any rifle sport enthusiast, who wants to pursue it seriously.

You used Chinese pellets in Olympics, why did you trust it over German ones?

Getting good ammunition is important and very very critical for good performance. Testing and getting ammunition which suits your barrel is completely based on luck. Although the Chinese as well as the German pellets are the same quality wise, it depends from batch to batch. Around the time of the Olympics the pellets coming out of China suited my rifle's barrel more than the German ones. And I took the gold, beating the Chinese, using pellets made in his country.

Do you wish to win another gold at London Olympics?

Olympic medals are the ultimate in sports achievement and like any other athlete I believe in that!