London: Abhinav Bindra would be aiming for a second-successive medal, while Gagan Narang would hope to be third-time lucky after past disappointments when the hyped duo takes aim in the 10m Air Rifle event of the London Olympics here on Monday.
Bindra, India's first individual Olympic gold-medallist who got the yellow metal in Beijing 2008, claims to have all but forgotten about the glory that he brought four years ago.
"Looking at the past has no bearing, I don't want to soak myself with the thoughts of Beijing performance. I won a gold four years ago in two hours of shooting. That is over and done with," Bindra has stated.
This would be Bindra's fourth Olympic appearance and perhaps never before would he have endured the immense burden of expectations that has followed him to the British capital. Narang, on the other hand, has had to face disappointments in his two previous appearances at the big event.
Narang has gone on to win numerous medals in the ISSF World Cups, World Championship, Commonwealth Games and the Asiad, besides creating a new world record in 2008, but Olympic glory has always eluded the ever-smiling shooter from Hyderabad.
But given the good form he was in going into the Games here, the Olympic medal jinx could well be broken this time around.
"I have been unlucky twice (Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008), hope I get third time lucky," Narang has said.
Besides competing against each other, the duo will also face a stiff challenge from China's Zhu Qinan, who was incidentally beaten by Bindra in Beijing.
Besides 10-metre, Narang is also competing in 50-m Rifle Prone (August 3) and 50-m Rifle 3 Position (August 6), giving himself enough chances of winning a medal at the Royal Artillery Barracks. For the first time ever, India will have 11 shooters, three more than the eight participants in the Beijing Games.
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