The Hindu : Front Page : Nation toasts Abhinav Bindra on arrival

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Friday, Aug 15, 2008
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Nation toasts Abhinav Bindra on arrival

Special Correspondent

Ace shooter calls on President, Vice-President and Prime Minister

— Photo: R. V. Moorthy

PRESIDENTIAL PAT: Abhinav Bindra, gold medal winner at the Beijing Olympics, being congratulated by President Pratibha Patil at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday.

NEW DELHI: Abhinav Bindra, the shooter who won a gold medal in the Beijing Olympics, was the toast of the Capital on Thursday. Leading the nation in toasting the 25-year-old medallist — who reached here from Beijing early in the morning to a warm welcome — was President Pratibha Devisingh Patil.

Accompanied by his parents and Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports M.S. Gill, the shooter — who is India’s lone representation on the medals’ tally till now at this Olympics — had a busy day meeting the country’s top leadership with his prized possession: the gold medallion.

Presented with plaque

Wearing the Indian Olympic contingent’s uniform, Mr. Bindra spent 20 minutes with the President at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Patting his cheek, the President wanted to know how he maintained his composure during the final tense moments of the competition. She also presented him with a plaque of the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Speaking after meeting Mr. Bindra, Vice-President Hamid Ansari said sports was not about glamour, but sheer hard work.

Hopeful of Indian players picking up more medals in the Olympics in future, he said one gold medal does not reflect the expectation of a country with a vast population like India.

Later, Mr. Bindra, along with his parents and Mr. Gill, met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur.

He also met Congress president Sonia Gandhi at her 10 Janpath residence.

Later in the evening, he called on Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee.

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