What is the Olympic Order? Everything about the award won by legendary Indian shooter Abhinav Bindra
Olympic Order is one of the highest awards given to an athlete in the Olympics. The award is given to the athletes because of their contribution to promoting the Olympic movement.
Olympic Order is a way of appreciating the athlete for their dedication to promoting the values and ideology of the Olympic events. The award was introduced in 1975, and it was a replacement for the Olympic Diploma of Merit.
The Olympic Order has three grades at the start - Gold, Silver, and Bronze. During the 87th session of the International Olympic Committee, the decision was taken just to make it a single award and not discriminate the award by having three medals.
The first award was won by Avery Brundage from the United States of America in 1975. He served as the president of the International Olympic Committee from 1952 to 1972.
In the ongoing Summer Olympics 2024 in Paris, India's Abhinav Bindra has been named the award winner. Abhinav Bindra is the first individual to win a gold medal for India in the Olympics. He is one of the two individuals to win the Gold Medal for the country. In 22 years of his career, Bindra has won 150 medals and was also awarded Padma Bhushan from the Government of India.
Abhinav Bindra's journey to win the Olympic Order
Born in Dehradun, Abhinav Bindra had an early start to his career in shooting. He was determined to do something big for himself and the country. His determination led him to train for longer hours in Germany under the coaching of Gaby Buhlmann.
Abhinav Bindra became the youngest participant in the Commonwealth Games at the age of 15 in the 1998 Commonwealth Games. However, his first big achievement came in the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games as he won Silver for the country. Since then, he never looked back, and his eyes were reaching the top spot at the podium in the Olympics.
In 2006, he won his first gold in the individual segment at the World Championship. His preparations were on the right path for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Abhinav Bindra made history by clinching the first gold for India in the Olympics and became an inspiration for the youngsters in the country.
Bindra has been part of sports even after his retirement. He has been associated with the welfare of athletes in India and across the globe. Bindra is associated with ABTP, a group of sports science and advanced physical medicine and rehabilitation (PMR) centers, and the organization has served more than 5,000 athletes and medical patients.
It is because of his dedication towards sports and promoting harmony, that Abhinav Bindra will receive the Olympic Order award on 10th August 2024 in Paris.