India clinched
its first ever individual
Olympic gold medal coming after participating
in the Olympics for 108 years, in the event
10 meter air rifle shooting
finals at the 2008 Beijing
Olympic Games. The historic victory by
Abhinav Singh Bindra credited him the first
Indian to win an
individual gold medal at the Olympic Games
and the first gold medal since 1980 when the
Men's Field Hockey Team won the gold.
“He scored 596 (fourth) in the qualifying
round and out-scored all other shooters in the
finals with a round of 104.5. In the finals,
he started with a shot of 10.7, and none of
his shots were below 10.0. Bindra was tied with
Henri Häkkinen heading into his final shot.
Bindra scored his highest of the finals - 10.8
while Hakkinen came with 9.7 to settle for Bronze
medal.”
“Abhinav Singh Bindra belongs to an affluent
Punjabi Khatri Sikh family. His parents, Dr.
Apjit and Babli Bindra, are promoters of the
Hitech Group of companies with a turnover of
Rs. 300 crores (US $75 million) with interests
in agro- and dog food-processing, computer gaming,
livestock genetics and pharmaceuticals.
| 
