Abhinav Bindra created history when he became the first-ever Indian to win an individual gold medal at the Olympics in 2008. The then 25-year-old had scripted a unique feat by winning the country's first gold in an individual event when he returned with the yellow metal&nbsp;in the 10-m air rifle competition.&nbsp;

In addition, the legendary shooter Bindra had secured as many as four consecutive gold medals in the Commonwealth Games,&nbsp;from 2002 to 2014, and also ended as&nbsp;the top-prize winner at the&nbsp;World Championships held in 2006. While he was close to winning another Olympic medal in Rio 2016, he ended at the fourth spot. Nonetheless what followed was a surprising move from Bindra as he retired from the sport in the same year.

ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/two-pakistani-boxers-mysteriously-disappear-in-birmingham-in-the-aftermath-of-the-commonwealth-games-505946">Two Pakistani boxers mysteriously disappear in Birmingham after Commonwealth Games 2022</a>

Recently, a fan commented on a video of Bindra's memorable Olympic gold medal triumph on August 11, 2008, shared by The Bridge's account. A Twitter user wrote,&nbsp;"Why he retired too early is something he will answer someday to his fans.." To this, the 39-year-old Bindra broke his silence and also replied to the user.

He wrote, "1.) Recognised my fading skills 2). Failed in two successive Games 3). Was the appropriate time to give my spot to a younger athlete and talent ! (did not just want to hold on to it)"

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1.) Recognised my fading skills 2). Failed in two successive Games 3). Was the appropriate time to give my spot to a younger athlete and talent ! ( did not just want to hold on to it )
— Abhinav A. Bindra OLY (@Abhinav_Bindra) <a href="https://twitter.com/Abhinav_Bindra/status/1557623597971415040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2022</a></blockquote>
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For the unversed, Abhinav wasn't India's first-ever Olympic medallist among shooters.&nbsp;Colonel Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore had secured&nbsp;silver in the 2004 Athens Olympics, however, Bindra moved past him and ensured a top-spot finish&nbsp;in the 2008 edition.&nbsp;After Bindra, Gagan Narang claimed&nbsp;bronze&nbsp;in the same 10m Air Rifle category in the 2012 London Olympics whereas Vijay Kumar matched Rathore's feat and won&nbsp;silver in the 25 m rapid fire pistol competition. These four&nbsp;are the only elite members from the shooting fraternity to have&nbsp;won Olympic medals&nbsp;for the country.

Abhinav Bindra created history when he became the first-ever Indian to win an individual gold medal at the Olympics in 2008. The then 25-year-old had scripted a unique feat by winning the country's first gold in an individual event when he returned with the yellow metal in the 10-m air rifle competition.

Abhinav Bindra created history when he became the first-ever Indian to win an individual gold medal at the Olympics in 2008. The then 25-year-old had scripted a unique feat by winning the country's first gold in an individual event when he returned with the yellow metal in the 10-m air rifle competition. In addition, the legendary shooter Bindra had secured as many as four consecutive gold medals in the Commonwealth Games, from 2002 to 2014, and also ended as the top-prize winner at the World Championships held in 2006. While he was close to winning another Olympic medal in Rio 2016, he ended at the fourth spot. Nonetheless what followed was a surprising move from Bindra as he retired from the sport in the same year. ALSO READ | Two Pakistani boxers mysteriously disappear in Birmingham after Commonwealth Games 2022 Recently, a fan commented on a video of Bindra's memorable Olympic gold medal triumph on August 11, 2008, shared by The Bridge's account. A Twitter user wrote, "Why he retired too early is something he will answer someday to his fans.." To this, the 39-year-old Bindra broke his silence and also replied to the user. He wrote, "1.) Recognised my fading skills 2). Failed in two successive Games 3). Was the appropriate time to give my spot to a younger athlete and talent ! (did not just want to hold on to it)" 1.) Recognised my fading skills 2). Failed in two successive Games 3). Was the appropriate time to give my spot to a younger athlete and talent ! ( did not just want to hold on to it ) — Abhinav A. Bindra OLY (@Abhinav_Bindra) August 11, 2022 × For the unversed, Abhinav wasn't India's first-ever Olympic medallist among shooters. Colonel Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore had secured silver in the 2004 Athens Olympics, however, Bindra moved past him and ensured a top-spot finish in the 2008 edition. After Bindra, Gagan Narang claimed bronze in the same 10m Air Rifle category in the 2012 London Olympics whereas Vijay Kumar matched Rathore's feat and won silver in the 25 m rapid fire pistol competition. These four are the only elite members from the shooting fraternity to have won Olympic medals for the country.

Why did shooter Abhinav Bindra retire in 2016? Olympic gold medallist responds to a fan's query

Cyclist Kelly Catlin, who helped the United States win the women's pursuit team silver medal at the 2016 Rio Games, <a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/usas-three-time-cycling-world-champ-kelly-catlin-dead-at-23-202505">died at the age of 23</a>.&nbsp;

"The US cycling community suffered a devastating loss with the passing of Kelly Catlin," USA Cycling President and Chief Executive Rob DeMartini said in a statement.&nbsp;

"Kelly was more than an athlete to us, and she will always be part of the USA Cycling family," he added.&nbsp;

As per reports, her father Mark Catlin claimed in a letter that Kelly's death was a suicide.&nbsp;

"There isn’t a minute that goes by that we don't think of her and think of the wonderful life she could have lived," Mark Catlin wrote to the publication. "There isn’t a second in which we wouldn’t freely give our lives in exchange for hers. The hurt is unbelievable."&nbsp;

Catlin, who was a native of Minnesota, bagged several elusive medals in cycling in her short-lived career.&nbsp;

Besides silver medal in Rio Olympics, Catlin won gold medals in the women's team pursuit at 2016, 2017 and 2018 UCI Track Cycling World Championships.&nbsp;

Apart from cycling, Catlin was an academic aspirant as tried to balance her education and pro racing.&nbsp;

She was an alumna of the University of Minnesota and was a graduate student at Stanford University, studying computational mathematics.&nbsp;

According to a guest article she wrote in February for a cycling magazine Velo News, Catlin described her struggles in juggling her academic and athletic career.&nbsp;

"Being a graduate student in Computational Mathematics is easy. Being a graduate student while simultaneously competing for the National Team on the track is often more difficult," she wrote.&nbsp;

"Being a graduate student, track cyclist, and professional road cyclist can instead feel like I need to time-travel to get everything done. And things still slip through the cracks."&nbsp;

"It's like juggling with knives, but I really am dropping a lot of them. It's just that most of them hit the floor and not me," she added.&nbsp;

"The greatest strength you will ever develop is the ability to recognize your own weaknesses, and to learn to ask for help when you need it."&nbsp;

But she mentioned that slowly and painfully she has just begun learning it.&nbsp;

Cyclist Kelly Catlin, who helped the United States win the women's pursuit team silver medal at the 2016 Rio Games, died at the age of 23. "The US cycling community suffered a devastating loss with the passing of Kelly Catlin," USA Cycling President and Chief Executive Rob DeMartini said in a statement.

Cyclist Kelly Catlin, who helped the United States win the women's pursuit team silver medal at the 2016 Rio Games, died at the age of 23. "The US cycling community suffered a devastating loss with the passing of Kelly Catlin," USA Cycling President and Chief Executive Rob DeMartini said in a statement. "Kelly was more than an athlete to us, and she will always be part of the USA Cycling family," he added. As per reports, her father Mark Catlin claimed in a letter that Kelly's death was a suicide. "There isn’t a minute that goes by that we don't think of her and think of the wonderful life she could have lived," Mark Catlin wrote to the publication. "There isn’t a second in which we wouldn’t freely give our lives in exchange for hers. The hurt is unbelievable." Catlin, who was a native of Minnesota, bagged several elusive medals in cycling in her short-lived career. Besides silver medal in Rio Olympics, Catlin won gold medals in the women's team pursuit at 2016, 2017 and 2018 UCI Track Cycling World Championships. Apart from cycling, Catlin was an academic aspirant as tried to balance her education and pro racing. She was an alumna of the University of Minnesota and was a graduate student at Stanford University, studying computational mathematics. According to a guest article she wrote in February for a cycling magazine Velo News, Catlin described her struggles in juggling her academic and athletic career. "Being a graduate student in Computational Mathematics is easy. Being a graduate student while simultaneously competing for the National Team on the track is often more difficult," she wrote. "Being a graduate student, track cyclist, and professional road cyclist can instead feel like I need to time-travel to get everything done. And things still slip through the cracks." "It's like juggling with knives, but I really am dropping a lot of them. It's just that most of them hit the floor and not me," she added. "The greatest strength you will ever develop is the ability to recognize your own weaknesses, and to learn to ask for help when you need it." But she mentioned that slowly and painfully she has just begun learning it.

Olympic medal winning cyclist Kelly Catlin struggled to balance graduation and pro racing

Lydia Ko says she is &quot;super excited&quot; at the prospect of competing in her first Olympics next month although the women&#39;s world number one has decided against living at the Games village in Rio de Janeiro. 
 
Golf is returning to the Games for the first time since 1904 but the 19-year-old South Korean-born New Zealander wants to keep things as normal as possible for the 72-hole strokeplay competition in Brazil. 
 
&quot;I&#39;ve been excited about the Olympics since they announced it,&quot; Ko told Reuters in an interview after a rousing three-under-par 69 sent her sprinting through the field in the third round of the Ricoh Women&#39;s British Open today. 
 
&quot;Now that it&#39;s around the corner in a couple of weeks my heart is pounding. 
 
&quot;I was always going to stay outside of the village. I&#39;d love to stay in the village and get to meet other New Zealand athletes, but no, I&#39;ve decided to stay out so I can keep similar routines to when I play these kind of events (at Woburn).&quot; 
 
Double major winner, Ko, will be living at a hotel with her family, coach and New Zealand golf officials. 
 
The teenager loves home cooking and staying outside the Olympic Village will help her to maintain the same sort of lifestyle she has during regular tour events. 
 
&quot;I feel like I should try and not change my routines that much,&quot; said Ko. &quot;I&#39;m staying with my sisters so I should be in a similar atmosphere off the course. I feel that would be a good way to go. 
 
&quot;I don&#39;t want to change my routines that much even though it&#39;s the Olympics.&quot; 
 
Ko&#39;s agent Michael Yim told Reuters: &quot;She always travels with her family and if she stays in the village she has to stay alone. 
 
More Flexibility 
 
&quot;Staying at a hotel she has a little more flexibility to go out if she wants to go out. Not that you can&#39;t in the village but it&#39;s kind of like constrained. 
 
&quot;I think she just wanted a bit more comfort. That was always the decision from the get-go ... she&#39;ll have support for anything she needs,&quot; added Yim. 
 
Ko believes the Rio Games will boost knowledge and awareness of women&#39;s golf and provide the sport with a huge lift. 
 
&quot;Golf is quite an individual game,&quot; she said. &quot;Obviously we need a team around us but at the Olympics you are not just representing yourself and your team but your country as well. 
 
&quot;I think this could make a big difference in the game of golf especially women&#39;s golf.&quot; 
 
There was certainly a big difference in Ko&#39;s game today compared to the opening two rounds at the fourth and penultimate women&#39;s major of the season. 
 
The teenager went on an inspired run, firing six birdies in nine holes to the 16th. 
 
A lot of Ko&#39;s work was undone, though, when she lost her ball off the tee at the 18th and slipped to a closing double-bogey six. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s tough to finish on that but it&#39;s the best score I&#39;ve had during this tournament,&quot; she said after finishing with a three-under total of 213. 
 
&quot;The best cure for a double-bogey is a toffee, or sugar, any type of sugar; I love my chocolate,&quot; laughed Ko. 
 
(Reuters)

The Golfer loves home cooking and staying outside the Olympic Village will help her maintain the same lifestyle

Lydia Ko says she is "super excited" at the prospect of competing in her first Olympics next month although the women's world number one has decided against living at the Games village in Rio de Janeiro. Golf is returning to the Games for the first time since 1904 but the 19-year-old South Korean-born New Zealander wants to keep things as normal as possible for the 72-hole strokeplay competition in Brazil. "I've been excited about the Olympics since they announced it," Ko told Reuters in an interview after a rousing three-under-par 69 sent her sprinting through the field in the third round of the Ricoh Women's British Open today. "Now that it's around the corner in a couple of weeks my heart is pounding. "I was always going to stay outside of the village. I'd love to stay in the village and get to meet other New Zealand athletes, but no, I've decided to stay out so I can keep similar routines to when I play these kind of events (at Woburn)." Double major winner, Ko, will be living at a hotel with her family, coach and New Zealand golf officials. The teenager loves home cooking and staying outside the Olympic Village will help her to maintain the same sort of lifestyle she has during regular tour events. "I feel like I should try and not change my routines that much," said Ko. "I'm staying with my sisters so I should be in a similar atmosphere off the course. I feel that would be a good way to go. "I don't want to change my routines that much even though it's the Olympics." Ko's agent Michael Yim told Reuters: "She always travels with her family and if she stays in the village she has to stay alone. More Flexibility "Staying at a hotel she has a little more flexibility to go out if she wants to go out. Not that you can't in the village but it's kind of like constrained. "I think she just wanted a bit more comfort. That was always the decision from the get-go ... she'll have support for anything she needs," added Yim. Ko believes the Rio Games will boost knowledge and awareness of women's golf and provide the sport with a huge lift. "Golf is quite an individual game," she said. "Obviously we need a team around us but at the Olympics you are not just representing yourself and your team but your country as well. "I think this could make a big difference in the game of golf especially women's golf." There was certainly a big difference in Ko's game today compared to the opening two rounds at the fourth and penultimate women's major of the season. The teenager went on an inspired run, firing six birdies in nine holes to the 16th. A lot of Ko's work was undone, though, when she lost her ball off the tee at the 18th and slipped to a closing double-bogey six. "It's tough to finish on that but it's the best score I've had during this tournament," she said after finishing with a three-under total of 213. "The best cure for a double-bogey is a toffee, or sugar, any type of sugar; I love my chocolate," laughed Ko. (Reuters)

World number 1 Ko will not stay at Olympic Village

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on Wednesday reinstated credentials of a drug testing laboratory in Rio de Janeiro for the Olympic Games, ending a month-long suspension that had threatened to embarrass the host country. 
 
The decision avoided a backup scheme to send blood and urine samples from Olympic athletes to labs outside Brazil during the Games. 
 
Similar steps were taken after the same lab at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro lost its credentials for the 2014 World Cup, also held in Brazil. 
 
The agency did not explain how the lab had failed to comply with international standards in June or what steps had been taken to fix the situation. 
 
Technical errors leading to false results were likely the cause of the suspension, a source familiar with the decision told Reuters in June. 
 
&quot;Athletes can be confident that anti-doping sample analysis has been robust throughout the laboratory&#39;s suspension and that it will also be during the Games,&quot; WADA director general Olivier Niggli said in a statement. 
 
The suspension just weeks ahead of the Olympics was a high-profile black eye for the lab, in which Brazil recently invested 188 million reais ($58 million) for new equipment and facilities. 
 
Doping is a major concern ahead of the Rio Games on Aug. 5-21, the first Olympics to be held in South America. 
 
Several anti-doping agencies are pushing to ban Russian athletes after charges of state-backed doping at the 2014 winter Olympics. 
 
(Reuters)

WADA had suspended credentials of the laboratory on June 24 for failing to comply with international standards

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on Wednesday reinstated credentials of a drug testing laboratory in Rio de Janeiro for the Olympic Games, ending a month-long suspension that had threatened to embarrass the host country. The decision avoided a backup scheme to send blood and urine samples from Olympic athletes to labs outside Brazil during the Games. Similar steps were taken after the same lab at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro lost its credentials for the 2014 World Cup, also held in Brazil. The agency did not explain how the lab had failed to comply with international standards in June or what steps had been taken to fix the situation. Technical errors leading to false results were likely the cause of the suspension, a source familiar with the decision told Reuters in June. "Athletes can be confident that anti-doping sample analysis has been robust throughout the laboratory's suspension and that it will also be during the Games," WADA director general Olivier Niggli said in a statement. The suspension just weeks ahead of the Olympics was a high-profile black eye for the lab, in which Brazil recently invested 188 million reais ($58 million) for new equipment and facilities. Doping is a major concern ahead of the Rio Games on Aug. 5-21, the first Olympics to be held in South America. Several anti-doping agencies are pushing to ban Russian athletes after charges of state-backed doping at the 2014 winter Olympics. (Reuters)

Rio drug lab recertified for Olympic testing

American sprinter Allyson Felix promises to be ready for Rio next month after a &quot;disappointing&quot; performance at the US Olympic trials that saw her fall short of qualifying to run a 200/400 double at the games. 
 
&quot;I do feel good going into Rio, my focus has not shifted from what I had hoped to do,&quot; said Felix, who met with the media in Beverly Hills following the trials. 
 
&quot;I think that what happened to me was just unfortunate. I think injuries are a part of sport and it is something that you just have to deal with. For me I feel so grateful to have made this team at all as two months ago I was not walking at all. So its pretty amazing to me that I&#39;m still going to Rio and while it doesn&#39;t look exactly how I hoped it would. But I&#39;m still going after it with everything I have.&quot; 
 
The defending Olympic champion at the 200 metre distance finished fourth at the trials, one spot short of earning the chance to defend her title. 
 
Felix cited a freak ankle injury in the spring that impacted her training. She will still be representing the US in the 400 metre run with hopes of earning a spot on the US relay teams. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m very hopeful to be on the relays and I&#39;m very and I hope to be on the 4x100 and the 4X400,&quot; said Felix.&nbsp;&quot;I think my biggest issue with running with the injury was running out of time, really. Now that I have another month to get back to 100 per cent I feel confident that I will be ready to go when it comes to Rio.&quot; 
 
The 30-year-old sprinter told Reuters though that she&#39;s not letting the potential threat of the Zika virus cast a shadow over the games in Brazil. 
 
&quot;I think obviously it is a real concern,&quot; said Felix. &quot;Yes it is, but I think for me I have to place my faith in the authorities that&#39;s there and if the USOC is telling us that we&#39;re ok to go and compete than that is what I&#39;m going to do.&quot; 
 
Felix is less confident though about that the ongoing doping issues surrounding track and field. 
 
&quot;I would hope that the playing field is more level,&quot; said Felix. &quot;But, I would say that my confidence isn&#39;t high to think that there are not real issues. Just the number of scandals we see now just shows the real issues that are there in sports. It is very hard to deal with as a clean athlete. You are going to the biggest race of your life and you hope that that is a clean race. But can you say that you are a 100 per cent that you are sure. I don&#39;t think that you can say that so. It is hard I think but I hope we are moving in the right direction. I think that exposing athletes that are happening now is I think is a step in the right direction.&quot; 
 
The 2016 Olympic games in Rio will open on August 6th and run through August 22. 
 
(Reuters)

Allyson Felix finished fourth at the trials, one spot short of earning the chance to defend her title

American sprinter Allyson Felix promises to be ready for Rio next month after a "disappointing" performance at the US Olympic trials that saw her fall short of qualifying to run a 200/400 double at the games. "I do feel good going into Rio, my focus has not shifted from what I had hoped to do," said Felix, who met with the media in Beverly Hills following the trials. "I think that what happened to me was just unfortunate. I think injuries are a part of sport and it is something that you just have to deal with. For me I feel so grateful to have made this team at all as two months ago I was not walking at all. So its pretty amazing to me that I'm still going to Rio and while it doesn't look exactly how I hoped it would. But I'm still going after it with everything I have." The defending Olympic champion at the 200 metre distance finished fourth at the trials, one spot short of earning the chance to defend her title. Felix cited a freak ankle injury in the spring that impacted her training. She will still be representing the US in the 400 metre run with hopes of earning a spot on the US relay teams. "I'm very hopeful to be on the relays and I'm very and I hope to be on the 4x100 and the 4X400," said Felix. "I think my biggest issue with running with the injury was running out of time, really. Now that I have another month to get back to 100 per cent I feel confident that I will be ready to go when it comes to Rio." The 30-year-old sprinter told Reuters though that she's not letting the potential threat of the Zika virus cast a shadow over the games in Brazil. "I think obviously it is a real concern," said Felix. "Yes it is, but I think for me I have to place my faith in the authorities that's there and if the USOC is telling us that we're ok to go and compete than that is what I'm going to do." Felix is less confident though about that the ongoing doping issues surrounding track and field. "I would hope that the playing field is more level," said Felix. "But, I would say that my confidence isn't high to think that there are not real issues. Just the number of scandals we see now just shows the real issues that are there in sports. It is very hard to deal with as a clean athlete. You are going to the biggest race of your life and you hope that that is a clean race. But can you say that you are a 100 per cent that you are sure. I don't think that you can say that so. It is hard I think but I hope we are moving in the right direction. I think that exposing athletes that are happening now is I think is a step in the right direction." The 2016 Olympic games in Rio will open on August 6th and run through August 22. (Reuters)

American Sprinter Felix readies for Rio

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Why did shooter Abhinav Bindra retire in 2016? Olympic gold medallist responds to a fan's query

Olympic medal winning cyclist Kelly Catlin struggled to balance graduation and pro racing

World number 1 Ko will not stay at Olympic Village

Rio drug lab recertified for Olympic testing

American Sprinter Felix readies for Rio