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India's first-ever Olympic gold medallist and shooting legend Abhinav Bindra recently shared his Olympic experiences in an inspirational session with the national shooting squad at Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range before the team enters the final three months of crucial preparation for the Paris Olympics 2024.
The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) organized the session ahead of the first batch of shooters making their way to Europe for equipment tuning and ammunition testing.
In his opening statement, Abhinav reminded the squad:
“Success is not a one-off event. Doing the right things consistently day in and day out is what leads to success.”
When questioned about self-discipline, Abhinav urged the shooters to be brutally honest with themselves every day. Additionally, he acknowledged that he might have chosen a slightly different path if he were to plan his career all over again.
“I wish I had a more balanced life and could have had other hobbies. I almost dehumanised my pursuit. I would definitely tell myself to be kinder to myself. I feel that I didn’t pat myself on the back often after I had achieved the goals,” Abhinav added.
“I never thought of winning or losing” - Abhinav Bindra
When asked by small-bore coach Manoj Kumar about the tools he had developed to counter Olympic expectations, Abinav said:
“You have to increase your self-awareness as a shooter. The changes that are happening around you, you have to acknowledge them.”
Abhinav emphasized that by the time he reached his third Olympics in Beijing, he had completely detached himself from the outcome.
“You know by that time it was my fourth Olympics and I had managed to totally detach myself from the outcome. I was totally focused on the process. I wanted to do my best with every single shot. I never thought of winning or losing. I managed to stay in the present moment because the truth is in the present moment,” he stated.
He concluded the lively session by urging the shooters not to train just to improve their performance in training sessions, but rather to enhance their skills for competitions. The session was coordinated by the team's High-Performance Director Dr. Pierre Beauchamp.
India has secured a total of 19 quota places in shooting for the Paris Olympic Games across Rifle, Pistol, and Shotgun disciplines, making their highest quota haul ever.
Notably, three shooters are all set to compete in women’s air pistol in the last Olympic qualification event in Rio, as only one quota place is left to be clinched for India in the pistol category.
Furthermore, the shotgun team is scheduled to take part in the final Olympic qualification event in Doha, aiming to secure four quota places for the quadrennial event, one each in trap and skeet for men and women.
