Rewind: Abhinav Bindra's historic gold at Beijing 2008

"A friend once told me if meditation was a sport, it would be shooting."

These are the words of Abhinav Bindra, the man who made history at the 2008 Beijing Olympics by winning India's first individual gold medal in the men's 10m air rifle category.

Most people only know this part of the story. Few are aware of the immense challenges Bindra faced to achieve this milestone and the pain he endured before reaching the pinnacle of his career.

Winning the Olympic gold had been his sole ambition since the moment he first held a gun.

Bindra's fascination towards the sport started as a young kid. Growing up on a farm, Bindra was exposed to guns through his father, who cleaned them regularly. This sparked a childish curiosity in him.

This curiosity soon evolved into a passion as he began practicing the sport. Bindra decided to dedicate his life to one goal: winning a gold medal for India at the Olympics.

Athens 2004, a tale of misfortune

At the time of the 2004 Athens Olympics, Bindra was at his absolute best.

Ranked third in the world, Bindra turned heads during the qualifying rounds by scoring 597 out of a possible 600 points, breaking the world record in the process.

Indian shooting enthusiasts raised their hopes, more or less certain that Bindra would end up on the podium.

The finals, however, told a different story.

The ten shots Bindra took in the finals were, in his own words, "the ten worst shots of my life."

Although he seemed to be doing everything right, he kept missing his mark by a significant margin. Slowly, his name slipped out of the podium places, and he had to settle for coming back home with nothing but heartbreak.

It became another tale of "so close, yet so far" for an Indian at the Olympics—a recurring story.

Attention to detail

After returning home, Bindra and his coach analyzed what went wrong during the finals, and the reason was quite appalling.

They discovered that a loose tile on which he stood during the finals caused him to lose stability, leading his shots to go wayward. Talk about fine margins!

Bindra, however, learned his lesson. He became extremely detail-oriented and, during training, subjected himself to every possible situation that could occur in the arena, preparing himself to deal with any setbacks.

Beijing 2008, redemption and glory

Once again, Bindra was the talk of the town at Beijing. Would there be redemption, or would it be the same old story of Indians and 'just misses' at the Olympics?

In the finals, Bindra faced a significant challenge as the sights on his rifle went out of sync, causing him to miss his mark during practice shots.

This time, though, Bindra did not panic. He was prepared. His attention to detail paid off as he knew how to correct the issue and get back on track.

After nine rounds, he was tied with Finnish shooter Henri Hakkinen at the top of the standings with 689.7 points. One shot remained.

As the final shots were fired, Bindra hit a 10.8, his highest score in the finals, while Hakkinen managed only a 9.7.

In that moment, Bindra etched his name in the history books as India's first-ever individual gold medal winner!

Within mere hours, one name echoed from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh: Abhinav Bindra, the golden boy of the nation!

"It was no longer my achievement. It was an achievement for the entire country. The reaction that a lot of people had completely overwhelmed me and that I was definitely not prepared for," said Bindra.

As India prepares to compete on the grandest stage in Paris, Bindra's story serves as a beacon of hope and motivation.

His journey from a determined young shooter to India's first individual gold medalist at the Olympics stands as a testament to perseverance, dedication, and the relentless pursuit of excellence.