Sharp mind,sharper eye

Hes called a flair-shooter in Indias pistol circles,someone who broke away from the bracketed regimentation of army technique at MHOWs Army Marksmanship Unit and put together his own unique style.

As coach I taught the whole pistol bunch many things,but he was the fastest learner,the most focussed, says Russian coach Smirnov,whos been with the pistol shooters for the last four years. Having joined the army in 2001,he took to pistol as a service weapon sport in 2003,and was a national champ in two years time,debuting internationally in 2005.

But Vijay Kumar was always the tinkerer even before he became a shooter,and with his sharp mind attracted to all technical gadgets,often taking apart machines and then putting them back. Winning a silver also meant,hes dissembled his weapon and finetuned it on his own,like he did toy trains and kitchen appliances at home in Harsour in Himachal.

I was always interested in mechanical engineering. Luckily I got a seat at Himachals National Trade Certificate in Mechanic Electronics centre and that gave me basics of all sorts of machines, he had said earlier. Vijay was most encouraging when his younger brother went a step up in education to follow a Master of Computer applications. My father Bankoo Ram Sharma is an ex-Serviceman,but he always stressed on academics which were important in our joint family, says the shooter,who loved looking into the theory of every practical technique he tried.

But it was his quick alert reaction-speed that guided his inclination towards the rapid fire event in pistol. It wasnt that popular in India. But luckily the army hired a Russian coach,and I learnt the fundamentals from an expert, he added.

The hit-or-miss rapid fire final is Vijays speciality owing to his natural speed and practiced persistence. He works harder than everyone,but importantly grasps technique better than anyone too, says coach Smirnov who believes his ward has internalised the shooting routine enough to aim if awoken from his sleep,but still picked mistakes that could have in fact yielded a gold.

A big fan of iPads BrainTrain games that test reactions,Vijay is known to be ultra competitive even when competing with team-mates. Still,hed missed out the Beijing games after suffering from chikungunya during the trials. His London qualification too was an indicator of his superior response to what are stress-filled situations for lesser men. With five men shooting off for 1 quota place,hed been tied on third with a Chinese,but shot all 5 in the last series to make the London cut.

His army discipline ensured he maintained basic standards of fitness in an event where the shoulder and back bear the brunt. Winner at the Commonwealth Games and a medallist at 2006 Asian Games,Vijay remained a big fan of German great Ralf Schumann,five-time world champion,and thrice Olympic medallist who had mastered the 100 milimetre diameter 10s ring. On Friday,he emulated one part of his heros feat.

Ive been in top competition before,and I treated this just like any other competition, he says. Having won at all major competitions though as part of big-winning Indian shooting packs,which meant his bronzes and silvers remained in the shadow Vijay Kumar now believes he now has the big one. Now we can say my medal haul is complete, even as coach Smirnov took copious notes,adding,we now prepare for Brazil 2016.