Abhinav Bindra, the only Indian to win an individual Olympic gold medal, was conferred the Inspirational Giant of the Decade honour at the 2021 Sportstar ACES Awards on Sunday.
An inspiration to a new generation of Indian shooters, Bindra made history when he won the 10m air rifle event at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, two years after winning the World Championships gold medal. He has also achieved success at the Commonwealth Games with four gold medals, two silver and one bronze, and has one silver and two bronze medals from the Asian Games.
“I’m extremely humbled to receive this award. My gratitude to the jury, to Sportstar and the entire Hindu Group for deeming me worthy of an honour such as this. I thank you very much,” Bindra said on receiving the award.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Sportstar and The Hindu Group for their contribution to the development of sport in India. You all have had a very meaningful role. I remember being covered as a young athlete in Sportstar as a 12- or 13-year old boy in the year 1999. Your reporter at that time, Kamesh Srinivasan, who I’m still very much in touch with, has had an immense role in the development of the sport of shooting as well,” he added.
The 2021 edition of the Sportstar ACES Awards honoured the Giants of the Decade in Indian sport, with the winners being assessing on their performance and consistency from 2011 to 2020. Eleven awards were presented under the popular choice category, which was open to public voting, along with 14 jury awards as well as special recognition awards under two new categories – Sports for Good and Giants off the Field – that recognise the work of organisations and individuals who have used sports for the betterment of society.
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