August 11th, 2008 
Aman 
Gold Medal Abhinav Bindra ended India’s gold medal drought on Monday in Beijing Olympics when he won India’s first individual gold medal in men’s 10m air rifle shooting event. It was a pulsating shooting final as winner could be decided only on the basis of his last shot. Silver was won by Zhu Qinan of China and Bronze by Henri Hakkinen of Finland . It must be noted that Zhu Qinan of China is the defending Olympic champion and was the hot favorite to win a gold medal in the event. Abhinav had entered the event as having a world ranking of 17.
Competition It was a very though competition as almost all the competitors scored never below 10 . His fellow Indian shooter Gagan Narang had had also did well in the even but could not reach the final as he lost in the count back. In the last Olympic games held in Athens Abhinav had broken the Olympic record but could not win a medal as the other competitors had performed well than him. He had finished seventh in the Athens Olympic games. He had won world championship in 2006.
Match Summary He was placed fourth when he entered the final. With his first shot of 10.7 he moved to the third place. He kept his nerves holding and had risen to the second spot even before the fourth shot. With his seventh shot of 10.6 he earned the lead and never looked back after it. He remained aggressive throughout the final and it earned him the gold medal in the end. Speaking to reporters he said “I sincerely hope my medal changes the face of India’s Olympic sports.” His last shot of 10.8 earned the gold medal for him and for India. His final score was (596+140.5)700.5 as compared to Zhu Qinan’s (699.7) and Henri Hakkinen’s (699.4).
Prizes It is the first time that India has won a gold medal after the 1980′s Olympic games that was won by the hockey team. Meanwhile President and Prime Minister has congratulated him for his performance. Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal has announced that Rs one crore will be given to him as an award. Haryana government has also announced a cash prize of 25 lakhs for him. BCCI has announced a reward of 25 lakhs for him. Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has also announced a prize of 5 lakhs for him. Chandigarh Administration has also announced a cash prize of 5 Lakhs for him.
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