Shotter Vijay kumar wins silver medal for india

London : Shooter Vijay Kumar won a silver medal for India in the men’s 25 metre rapid fire event at the 2012 London Olympics here on Friday. Kumar beat back the challenge of world champion Alexei Klimov of Russia, Chinese duo of Ding Feng and Zhang Jian and German Christian Reitz in the 40-shot final to finish runner-up in a thrilling finale behind Cuba’s Leuris Pupo.

Kumar beat back the challenge of world champion Alexei Klimov of Russia, Chinese duo of Ding Feng and Zhang Jian and German Christian Reitz in the 40-shot final to finish runner-up in a thrilling finale behind Cuba’s Leuris Pupo who shot his way to the gold with a world record equalling score of 34.

The 26-year-old army subedar from Himachal Pradesh found the target 30 times out of 40 attempts in the series comprising eight rounds of five shots each.

This is India’s second medal in the ongoing quadrennial extravaganza after fellow marksman Gagan Narang’s bronze in the 10m Air Rifle event on July 30. This was also the country’s fourth medal in shooting in Olympic history.

The other medal winners are Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore (silver in 2004 Athens) , Abhinav Bindra (gold in 2008 Beijing) besides Narang.

Kumar, who finished with a tally of 30 out of 40 in the final, was humble in victory. “I had mentally prepared myself for this moment,” he told reporters. “Being in the army has made me mentally tough and I used that to my advantage. Whatever I had planned, I have achieved.”
The garrison town of Mhow was in celebratory mode after Kumar, a product of the Army Marksmanship Unit (AMU) like Rathore, clinched the issue in London. Kumar, who joined the force in 2001, has been posted at Mhow since 2004.

The town erupted in joy and sweets were distributed. At AMU, army officers were elated. “At the unit, this has reinforced the belief that we’re going to bring more such laurels in the 2016 and the 2020 Olympics,” said Col AS Saran, commanding officer. “The medal will motivate young shooters, they will now believe they can achieve more.”