Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra says Indian shooters need to prepare carefully and keep expectations in check in the run-up to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Even though Indian shooters did well in several top level events in the past, they were not able to land a medal in the Rio and Tokyo Olympics.
Bindra, who secured India’s first individual gold medal in 10m air rifle in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, shared his idea about preparing for the Olympics.
“It is about training in a scientific manner to try and peak at the right time. That is something which is very important, to have careful preparation,” Bindra told Sportstar when he was asked what the Indian shooters need to do to come within the medal brackets in the Paris Games.
“And also to keep expectations in check, because when you start off your past does not matter. In sport, yesterday never counts. The experience can help you but it is not going to give you added points at the starting line. Everybody starts from zero.
“It is about training in a way which puts you in the best position to perform -- whether your batteries have to be full in terms of energy, whether you have to be training in a way (so that) you are technically and physically in the best shape at the right time. Then that will give you the best chance. In sport, nothing can be scripted.”
Bindra was delighted with Rudrankksh Patil’s air rifle gold winning performance in the World championships this year. Patil’s victory came after Bindra’s Worlds air rifle gold medal in 2006.
“He (Rudrankksh) is a world champion! It is absolutely fantastic to see and I wish him the best in the next couple of years. Leading up to Paris, it will require careful preparation to be able to be the best he can be, but of course the potential to be the best even in Paris is definitely existing,” said Bindra, the event ambassador of Sunday’s Tata Steel Kolkata 25K.
Bindra was pleased to notice the spread of shooting as a sport in India. “It has been fantastic. When I started, our Nationals used to have 200 people and now our Nationals have 12,000 people. It takes a month to do it. Obviously the growth has been phenomenal.”
Bindra spoke about his role as an International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission member.
“The IOC Athletes Commission does a lot of work. It is basically a bridge between the administrators, which is the leadership, and the athletes to ensure that athletes remain at the heart and centre of all decision making and the best interests of the athletes are always taken into consideration in all decision making forums. There is a lot of work we do also into the physical and mental well being of the athletes. We do a lot of work on making sure that the athlete experience in the Olympic Games is of world class level. For example, I have dedicated the last few years to athlete mental health. We put in a lot of effort into creating a lot of resources for the athletes, doing a lot of work to de-stigmatize it.”
Bindra was pleased about the progress in the Olympic Values Education Programme, being run by his foundation in association with the Odisha Government.
“It’s fantastic to see how sport is changing the lives of so many people. Currently about 35,000 to 40,000 kids are playing sports out of which 15,000 are girls. Many of them, for the first time, are experiencing the joy of playing sports. There has been tremendous impact in the first few months of this project -- whether it be on gender equality, whether it be behavioral changes in terms of girls becoming more confident to play sports or boys respecting girls much more. Respect is one of the key Olympic values, so that is something we propagate…We are in talks (with others about implementing it in other places). Nothing official as of yet, but there are interests from other states.”
Bindra also gave an idea about his ongoing effort to work with grassroots athletes.
“We are having 15 centres around the country. They are doing very well. We have had a tremendous amount of impact on the athletes. And the great thing is, at least I find it heartening, our work is basically with grassroots level athletes. That is something which I am very passionate about. I believe that elite athletes in this country are well looked after already, whether it be the government or other NGOs who are working with elite athletes. My passion lies in working with the young athletes. It is a long drawn dream, a long drawn process. We always don’t get the results but that is where the real support is needed, when young people start out and make sure that the foundation that is put through is the right one,” said Bindra.
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