India won its first medal in shooting at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, where Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore clinched a bronze medal for the country. It was the first time India won a medal in shooting, and it is the reason why, even to this very day, Rajyavardhan Singh's name is known to almost everyone. Years passed, and we won a series of medals in shooting. Currently, India has seven medals in shooting events at the Olympic Games, one gold, two silver, and four bronze medals.
Just like Rajyavardhan Rathore, we have seen Abhinav Bindra, Gagan Narang, Manu Bhaker, Sarabjot Singh, and Swapnil Kusale get the same level of fame for their achievements at the Olympic Games. However, today, we are going to talk about an Olympian who didn't get the recognition like the shooters we have mentioned despite winning a medal in the Olympics. We are talking about none other than Vijay Kumar Sharma, commonly known as Vijay Kumar, who is an Olympic bronze medalist.
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For the uninitiated, the London 2012 Olympics was so special for Indians, as it was the first time that Indian athletes won six medals at the biggest sporting event. India won two silver and four bronze medals at the London 2012 Olympics. While Gagan Narang won a bronze in the Men's 10m air rifle shooting event, Vijay won a silver in the Men's 25m rapid pistol shooting event. Both the shooters filled every Indian's heart with so much pride, but it's unfortunate that Vijay remained in Gagan Narang's shadow despite winning a silver medal at the Olympics.
Even after so many years, there's no Indian shooter who has managed to win a medal in the complex 25m rapid pistol shooting event, which makes Vijay Kumar's silver medal even more special. However, people hardly remember him now, and it is because the then government didn't appreciate Vijay's victory at the Olympics. This is the reason why he is the only Indian athlete, who won a silver medal at the Olympic Games, but he is known by the title, 'The Forgotten Hero'.
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Vijay Kumar was born on August 19, 1985, in Hamirpur's Harsour, which is in Himachal Pradesh. While his father, Banku Ram is a retired Subedar in the Indian Army, his mother was a homemaker. Right from an early age, Vijay was exposed to his father's disciplined army lifestyle and was mesmerised by his stories. Not only this, he was always intrigued by his father's guns and slowly started developing an interest in shooting. With his growing interest in shooting, his father advised him to join the Indian Army to serve the nation, and if he got lucky, he could also win some medals for his country.
Vijay Kumar prepared for the competitive exams on his father's suggestion and joined the Indian Army in 2001 as a sepoy. Soon, he was inducted into the Army Marksmanship Unit (AMU) due to his excellent shooting skills in 2003. In 2006, Vijay was promoted to the position of havildar from a sepoy and within months, he was appointed as a naib subedar. His first international tournament for India was the 2006 Commonwealth Games, where he won two gold medals. After his sensational debut on the global level, he went on to win numerous medals. Some of his most significant achievements include two silver medals at the ISSF WC, a bronze medal at the 2006 Doha Asian Games, three gold and one silver medals at the 2010 CWG, a bronze medal at 2010 Guangzhou, and a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics.
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What's heartbreaking is the fact that despite winning an Olympic silver medal for his country, he struggled to land a government job. Over the years, we have seen the government giving jobs to the Olympic medalists, but in Vijay's case, he didn't get the recognition he deserved from the Indian Army. He left the Indian Army in 2017 after 15 years of service. After being neglected by the government and the Indian Army for some years, it was in 2018 when Himachal Pradesh's government offered a direct-entry position as deputy superintendent of police (DSP) by the Himachal Pradesh state government after a lot of delays.
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It's unfortunate that an Olympic silver medalist had to wait for five long years in order to get a government job. Not only this, he also received a sum of Rs. 1 crore as a cash prize from the Himachal Government for being the first person from Himachal, who went on to win an Olympic medal. However, Vijay Kumar had never spoken badly about the Indian government and Army, but always wondered why he was treated differently.
We hope more and more Indians read about Vijay Kumar's story so that the forgotten Olympic medalist can finally have his share of fame and recognition. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know.
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