Author | Abhinav Bindra, Rohit Brijnath |
---|---|
Language | English |
Subject | Sports |
Genre | Autobiography |
Publisher | Harper Sport |
Publication date | 2011 |
Publication place | India |
Media type | Print (hardcover) |
Pages | 224 |
ISBN | 9789350291122 |
A Shot at History: My Obsessive Journey to Olympic Gold is 2011 autobiography of Indian 2008 Summer Olympics Gold medalist Abhinav Bindra. He won the medal in the 10-metre air rifle category, which made him India's first ever individual gold medalist; this victory came after he received the seventh rank at the 2004 Athens Olympics. However, due to Bindra's inexperience in writing, he co-authored the book with sportswriter Rohit Brijnath, which took them two years to complete. After it was released on October 20, 2011, at nationwide stores by Harpercollins, Union Sports minister Ajay Maken formally released the book on October 27, 2011, at a function in New Delhi. [1] The book's subsequent Bangalore release in November 2011 was done by Rahul Dravid and went on to receive good reviews. [2] [3]
In this book, Bindra tells that only hunger for success and inner desire helps anyone to achieve his or her dreams. He denies that only the best training, coaches can lead to anyone's success. In this book, he tells how various coaches helped him to become a professional shooter. Especially, he gives credit to his German coach Gabriele Bühlmann, who helped him to win a gold medal after finishing 7th in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens which he states as "the darkest hour in his career". He says that how he drew inspiration from shooters like Gagan Narang, Samaresh Jung, Jaspal Rana and Anjali Bhagwat. The book also highlights the unique situation faced by an Olympic contestant. He says that a cricketer or a Professional golfer has many matches or tournaments to prove himself in a single year if he fails in one, but an Olympian has to wait 4 long years to prove himself if he fails once. [4] [5]
India was represented at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne by a 270-member strong contingent comprising 183 sportspersons and 77 officials. 2004 Summer Olympics silver medalist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore was the flag bearer for India.
Gagan Narang is an Indian sport shooter, supported by the Olympic Gold Quest. He won the bronze medal in the Men's 10 m Air Rifle Event at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London with a final score of 701.1 on 30 July 2012. He was also a member of prestigious Padma award committee 2023.
Abhinav Bindra OLY is an Indian former sport shooter and a present businessman. He is an Olympic gold medalist as well as the first and one of only two Indians to win an individual Olympic gold medal. Bindra is also the first Indian to have held concurrently the world and Olympic titles for the men's 10-meter air rifle event, having earned those honors at the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2006 World Championships. Bindra has won seven medals at the Commonwealth Games and three medals at the Asian Games.
Shooting competitions at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing were held from August 9 to August 17, at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall and Beijing Shooting Range Clay Target Field. Of the fifteen events, the host country won five.
India competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. India was represented by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). A contingent of 57 athletes in 12 sports represented India, and had a support-staff of 42 officials.
The Men's 10 metre air rifle event at the 2008 Olympic Games took place on August 11 at the Beijing Shooting Range Hall. Abhinav Bindra became the first ever individual Olympic champion of India.
Henri Häkkinen is a Finnish sport shooter.
The Walther LG300 is a pre-charged pneumatic (PCP) air rifle designed for 10 metre air rifle match shooting.
Rohit David Brijnath is a veteran Indian sports journalist. Early in his career, Brijnath was a key member of the now-defunct weekly magazine Sportsworld, where he wrote alongside young journalists such as Mudar Patherya and Andy O'Brien. He has also worked for India Today and has written a recurring sports column for the BBC News website since 2004. He has also written for the Indian publication The Sportstar. He currently resides in Singapore with his wife, where he writes for the Straits Times. He also has a column called 'Game Theory' in the Indian publication 'Mint'.
Gabriele "Gaby" Bühlmann is a Swiss rifle shooter who competed at five Olympic Games from 1988 to 2004.
India competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, from 27 July to 12 August 2012. A total of 83 athletes, 60 men and 23 women, competed in 13 sports. Men's field hockey was the only team-based sport in which India was represented in these Olympic Games. India also marked its Olympic return in weightlifting, after the International Weightlifting Federation imposed a two-year suspension for the nation's athletes because of a doping scandal in Beijing.
Shooting is an important Olympic sport in India. Of India's 41 Olympic medals, seven have come from shooting, including a gold by Abhinav Bindra in the 2008 Olympics. Indian shooters who have excelled at international events include Abhinav Bindra, Jaspal Rana, Jitu Rai, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Vijay Kumar, Gagan Narang, Apurvi Chandela, Ronjan Sodhi, Anjali Bhagwat, Heena Sidhu, Shreyasi Singh, Manu Bhaker, Avani Lekhara, Mona Agarwal, Anisa Sayyed, Rahi Sarnobat, Anantjeet Singh Naruka, and Saurabh Chaudhary. Indian shooter Shimon Sharif is a well known shooting expert.
James Charles Huckle is an English sport shooter, who represented Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Jonathan William James Hammond is a British sport shooter, who has competed for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games and Great Britain at the Olympics. He is currently the head coach of the rifle team at the West Virginia University.
The Men's 10 metre air rifle event at the 2012 Olympic Games took place on 30 July 2012 at the Royal Artillery Barracks.
The GoSports Foundation (GSF) is an independent, donor-funded non-profit venture working towards securing funds and professional expertise for some of India's junior Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Established in 2008, it has worked with numerous athletes from across multiple Olympic and Paralympic disciplines through its scholarship programs.
India competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. Indian athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympics since 1920, although they made their official debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Rakesh Manpat is an Indian shooter from Bangalore. He completed his education from Jain University where he was in the junior division of NCC. In 2006, at 16, he became a Junior state champion, winning all gold medals. Rakesh Manpat was ranked third behind Gagan Narang and Abhinav Bindra at the Common Wealth Games Trials 2010.
Avani Lekhara is an Indian rifle shooter. She is a double gold medalist at the Paralympics having won the 10m rifle event the 2020 Paralympics as well as the 2024 Paralympics. She made history by winning two back-to-back golds. She also won the bronze in the 50m rifle 3 positions SH1 event at the 2020 Games, thus being the first Indian woman to win multiple medals at a single Paralympic Games. Lekhara is a two-time gold and one-time silver medalist at the Para World Cup.