Manu Bhaker, Abhinav Bindra and all about shooting as a sport I Blog By Team Bookosmia

Manu Bhaker, Abhinav Bindra and all about shooting as a sport 

Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh just made India proud with their bronze medal at 

the Paris 2024 Olympics in the mixed 10 m air rifle event. Earlier, Manu opened India’s account by winning her first bronze medal in the 10 m air rifle event. So what is the discipline of shooting all about? Let’s dive in.

Shooting has been part of the Olympics since the very beginning. There are three Olympic shooting disciplines: rifle, pistol and shotgun. In rifle and pistol, the shooting is done in a shooting range where athletes aim at targets that are at a distance of 10 m, 25m and 50 m. Shotgun shooting is done outdoors, where shooters have to aim at targets thrown in the air. 

Previous winners 

Independent India’s first individual gold medal came in shooting, thanks to Abhinav Bindra, who won the gold at the 10 meter air rifle event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Other medalists in shooting include Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, who won a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics in double trap; Vijay Kumar, who won silver at the 25 m rapid pistol event in the 2012 London Olympics; and Gagan Narang, who won bronze at the 10 m air rifle event in the same Olympics. 

Who is Abhinav Bindra?

Born in Uttarakhand, Abhinav was a determined youngster who had found his calling very early in the field of shooting. At 15, He was the youngest participant at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. After winning medals in top shooting events across the world, he was conferred with prestigious honours such as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, India’s highest sports award. In the 2004 Olympics, he set a new record but did not win a medal. Meanwhile, continuous participation had taken a toll on his health and he suffered a severe back injury. However, he did not let this distract him from his goal: a medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. 

The moment he was waiting for arrived—the final of the 10 m air rifle event. In the finals, he was tied with Henri Hakkinen heading into his final shot but that’s when Abhinav scored 10.8 and won the coveted individual gold for India. It is a moment India will never forget because it reminds us that, with determination and the right support, Indian athletes are second to none. 

After his retirement from the sport, Abhinav started the ‘Abhinav Bindra Foundation’, which strives to help Indian athletes with global best practices in sport science, education and social upliftment through sport. 

For his achievements and his numerous initiatives even after retirement, Abhinav has been selected as a Torch Bearer, a prestigious honour, at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

Quiz

Shooters wear special kinds of glasses that block objects from distracting their vision. You may have seen it live. What is it called?

1. Blinders
2. Closers 
3. Focusers

Answer : ________

Answer : Blinders

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