Gold spot, the zing thing for a billion Indians
Indraneel Das salutes Abhinav Bindra — the man who won a billion Indians their first ever individual Olympic gold.
It’s a date permanently etched in Indian history. The last of the naysayers, who held that Indians could never win a gold at the Olympics, were silenced when Abhinav Bindra won the air rifle gold in Beijing.
Life since the gold has been different, but one thing that still bothers him is the fate of the Olympic discipline in India.
“People need to realise what this gold means to Olympic sport in India. Here you are competing against 200-odd nations and your success is your country’s success.”
Sourav Ganguly, a man who knows what success means to him and the country, sang paeans to Bindra.
“It’s been an inspirational performance by Abhinav Bindra,” said Ganguly. Every sport has its big stage and to have performed at the Olympics, which is the biggest stage of them all, is a huge achievement.” And like a true sportsman, Ganguly believes this will give millions hope and a chance to dream. “A gold medal is an inspiration for every Indian,” he said.
Ganguly believes, from now on, every sportsperson will work diligently towards a target — and no target is higher than the gold. “Sportspersons will think if he (Abhinav) can do it, so shall we. It’s an inspiration for us cricketers as well.”
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