‘Learn from these games and move forward’: Abhinav Bindra’s message to Indian team as LA Olympics beckons

Indian athletes leave the arena after the closing ceremony of the Asian Games in Nagoya. (AP photo) NEW DELHI: Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra has urged Indian athletes to learn from the successes and disappointments of the 2026 Asian Games, calling for stronger high-performance systems and a renewed focus on preparations for the Los Angeles Olympics, less than two years away.Congratulating India’s athletes and support teams after the country finished fourth at the Aichi-Nagoya Games with 85 medals, Bindra highlighted the years of hard work and sacrifice behind their achievements while stressing the need for an honest assessment of the campaign.India finished with 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronze medals, falling short of their record tally of 106 medals at Hangzhou 2023. However, the campaign produced several historic successes, including gold medals in men’s and women’s cricket, kabaddi and hockey.In a lengthy post on X on Sunday, Bindra thanked the athletes, their families, coaches and support staff for their contributions, before urging the sports establishment to turn the lessons of Aichi-Nagoya into meaningful improvements.

“Huge respect for our athletes”

“Congratulations to every Indian athlete and Indian team at the Asian Games. A Games campaign is never just the few days we see on TV. It’s years of early mornings, injuries, doubts, missed opportunities and countless hours of work,” Bindra wrote.“So, first of all, huge respect to our athletes and also their families who go through this journey with them and make sacrifices that are unseen. To the coaches, support staff, federations, SAI, government and everyone working behind the scenes, THANK YOU!”The 2008 Beijing Olympic shooting gold medalist praised the breakthrough performances in Aichi-Nagoya, especially those of young athletes who have made their mark on the continental stage. However, he emphasized that even disappointments need to be explored, not just forgotten.“There have been some amazing breakthrough performances at these Games. Young athletes have announced themselves, others have stepped up to a new level and there have been moments that we can be very excited about. There have also been disappointments. That’s sport and every Games will have them. Now it’s about how honestly we learn from them,” he added.

‘LA is less than two years away’

Bindra called for a more comprehensive approach to athlete development, arguing that high-performance programs must provide the right expertise throughout an athlete’s career, rather than only stepping in when medals are within reach.“High performance can’t just be about reacting when an athlete is close to a medal. We need to build systems that athletes understand over several years,” he wrote.He highlighted the importance of sports science, data-driven decision making, coaching, competition planning, training load management, recovery and injury prevention along with building physical and mental resilience.“The most important thing is that the right expertise needs to get to the athlete at the right stage of their career, not when it’s too late,” he said.With the Summer Olympics looming, Bindra warned that the preparation window was shrinking and called for immediate action.“LA is less than two years away. It’s not a long time in Olympic sports. The athletes who will stand on the podium there are already deep in preparation today.”His message was to celebrate achievements, acknowledge shortcomings and return to work with renewed determination.“Be proud of what has been achieved. Learn from these games and move forward. We wish Team India all the best on their way to LA,” he concluded.