Indian gold medallist calls on next generation

OLYMPICS HERO: India's first individual gold medallist Abhinav Bindra. (AFP)

India's gold medal-winning shooter Abhinav Bindra has urged the country's Olympic chiefs to use the rare success at the Beijing Games as a stepping stone to further sporting glory.

Bindra, who made history by winning the first ever individual Olympic gold for India, said the time was ripe to ignite a passion for other sports in a country where cricket reigns supreme.

"We won three medals in Beijing and that gives us a lot of responsibility to keep the Olympic momentum going," Bindra said at an event Tuesday to welcome home India's Olympic heroes.

Bronzes for freestyle wrestler Sushil Kumar and boxer Vijender Kumar added to Bindra's gold to take India's tally to three - another first for India, which had never taken home more than two medals from a single Games.

"I see this as a great opportunity to promote Olympic sports," Bindra, who won the 10m air rifle event, said.

"We must now give our athletes the best opportunity so that they perform well at the London Olympics in 2012."

Indian Olympic Association president Suresh Kalmadi said he was hopeful of more private sponsors coming forward in the wake of the national euphoria that followed India's Beijing show.

The three medal winners were accorded a rapturous welcome back home which included rides on elephants, public rallies and handsome cash awards.

"Until now it was only cricket, which is played by only 10 countries," Kalmadi said. "But now we have Olympic medallists who have won in competitions among over 200 countries. Olympic sports have come of age in the country."

India's annual federal sports budget of 280 million dollars is less than half of the 724 million dollars eight franchises paid for owning cricket teams in the Indian Premier League.

Indian shooting officials were on the verge of pulling the team out of the Beijing Olympics before private sponsors stepped in.

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