Know Your Abhinav Bindra

Coach Gabriele Buhlmann Former Swiss shooter, never won a medal in her four Olympics. Specialist in technique and approach

Physiotherapist Dr Uwe Riesterer The German who kept Abhinav’s body tuned to the challenge

Psychologist Dr Amit Bhattacharjee Has a doctorate in sports psychology and management

Mental Coach Dr Timothy Harkness Wasn’t in Beijing but credit Abhinav’sconcentration to him

• Talent first spotted by Lt Col J.S. Dhillon, who took the future gold medallist under his wing
  
• Began participating in competitive events from age 13
  
• Has won individual gold in: Beijing Olympics, 2008; ISSF World Shooting Championships, Zagreb, ’06
  
• Has bagged gold in pairs event in: Commonwealth Games, Manchester, ’02; Commonwealth Games, Melbourne, ’06; Asian Shooting Championship, ’07 (team event)
  
• Other medals: Silver in Commonwealth Games, Manchester, ’02; bronze inCommonwealth Games, Melbourne, ’06
  
• Given Arjuna award in ’01; Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award for ’01-02

Has hit the jackpot from the day he bagged gold in Beijing

• Rs 1.5 crore—Laxmi Mittal, chairman of Arcelor-Mittal
  
• Rs 1 crore—Punjab government
  
• Rs 25 lakh—Haryana government
  
• Rs 25 lakh—Board of Control for Cricket in India
  
• Rs 11 lakh—Bihar government
  
• Rs 10 lakh—Maharashtra government
  
• Rs 10 lakh—Karnataka government
  
• Rs 5 lakh—MP government
  
• Rs 5 lakh—Orissa government
  
• Rs 5 lakh—Steel Authority of India Ltd
  
• Rs 5 lakh—Chandigarh Administration
  
• Rs 5 lakh—Municipal Corporation of Delhi
  
• Rs 1 lakh—Chhattisgarh government
  
• Also, free lifetime railway pass for AC first class. Patna indoor stadium to be named after Bindra.

• Quiet and reserved. Choosy about his friends.
  
• Don’t mistake his reticence for arrogance. Shooting is a mechanical sport, practised in isolation, makes an introvert out of even the most gregarious
  
• Immense concentration powers. Showed no emotion even on winning the gold because he was still in the ‘zone’

• Born on 28 September, 1982
  
• Father A.S. Bindra is a PhD in veterinary science and owns a flourishing business
  
• Mother Babli, was a national handball player
  
• Grandfather Col Bir Singh played for the services’ hockey team led by the legandary Dhyan Chand
  
• Sister Divya is married into the family that owns Atlas Cycle
  
• The family’s Hi Tech group is a 500-crore firm with interests in food processing, real estate and weapons. A new firm, Abhinav Futuristic Ltd, is to now develop five-star resorts
  
• Abhinav studied in Dehradun and later shifted to Chandigarh, where they live in a 13-acre farmhouse. The house boasts an Olympic-standard, fully-airconditioned shooting range, built at a cost of Rs 1 crore.
  
• Has done business management and also holds a diploma in Sports Mental Management