By Erik Kirschbaum
:
Abhinav Bindra won India’s first ever individual Olympic gold medal on Monday with a thrilling come-from-behind victory in the men’s 10m air rifle.
Bindra had been fourth after qualifying but had a brilliant final round and even hit a near perfect 10.8 on his last shot to pull in front of Henri Hakkinen of Finland, who dropped to bronze with a poor final shot of 9.7.
That allowed China’s Zhu Qinan, the defending Olympic champion and heavy favourite, to pass him on his final shot and win the silver medal.
“It’s just great,” Bindra told Reuters just before climbing on to the podium.
And — the celebrations have begun .
Babli Bindra, Abhinav’s mother, quipped: “Now I have lots of work ahead as he is the country’s most eligible bachelor.”
