I won India’s first ever individual Olympic gold medal.

Coming from a country with well over a billion people, you would imagine that this would define my identity. Initially, I thought this would be the case. I would forever be known by others, and myself, as one thing – Olympic gold medallist. Today, I feel quite differently. Of course, it is an achievement I am proud of, but it is not who I am.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is a privilege to be here to speak to you on a subject that I am passionate about and one that is deeply personal. What are the different social roles high performance athletes play? What can we all do to help them to play these roles?

When we look around, we see the world changing rapidly on many dimensions. Artificial intelligence, medical progress, new business modes and systems of governance being some of them. So much has evolved since the advent of the Modern Olympic Games. Yet, sport and its values have maintained their universal relevance and appeal.

There is no doubt that elite athletes have played an important, constant and consistent role right through these evolutions and revolutions. They strive, experiment and expand human capabilities and our common understanding of ourselves. Every time we feel like we have come up against a boundary, there are athletes across the world working to redefine it. Athletes are also role models for the values of the Olympic and sports movement. These values—excellence, friendship, and respect— which form the cornerstone of the Olympic spirit and reflect the broader, universal virtues that sports can instill in humanity. Their last in relevance is testament to the sports movement that has been built and sustained on curiosity, collectivism and the belief in sport’s role in all our lives.

I began this talk saying that, today, my gold medal doesn’t define who I am. Why do I say that? I’d like to share a few of my experiences and perspectives. I hope that, through my story, I might be able to provoke more thought and understanding on the many role that athletes can play in our world.

Asa kid, I had a tough time with sport. I was overweight and didn't enjoy physical activity. Whenever I tried sport, I felt clumsy and out of place. But then, I found a sport that suited me well - shooting. It didn't require a lot of movement; I just had to stand still. This made it easier for me to participate, and I began to enjoy it more. I was attracted to the extremely individual nature of the sport. I had to own my success as well as my failure. The sport made me an explorer of sorts - of myself, my body, my mind and emotions. In the process, I feel like I learnt to live an examined life.

Shooting was my sport, an individual sport, and yet I had so many other people who participated in my journey. There was my first coach Col. Dhillon.  The colonel was very reluctant to train me as he believed that people from a privileged background don’t have the desire and ability to work hard. I had to write a letter to persuade him to coach me. The colonel taught me a lot about work ethic, about giving it your best and having a purity to one’s pursuit. I do hope he feels his investment in me was worthwhile, and that this athlete was able to stand by the words in the letter that young boy wrote to him.

At the time, Jaspal Rana was our biggest shooting star. As a young boy, I remember waking up at the crack of dawn in 1996 to watch him march at the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games in Atlanta. I was inspired by his achievements. My parents also played an important role at this stage. They taught me a lot about perseverance and about facing adversity. As I found meaning, it seemed like other around me found joy and meaning in supporting me.

While I was in boarding school, my dad used to write me letters to try to get me into sport on how it will help me in life with benefits such as teamwork, stamina and perseverance. When I think back, it was my first introduction to Olympic values!

The early results from shooting competition gave me valuable feedback. I felt like international sporting achievement was a worthy dream. I was still an explorer but, now, also a dreamer. The scale of my pursuit had grown many times over. I entered the selfish, self-developmental phase of my career – I was the centre of everyone else’s life and also the sole focus of my own.

Giving athletes the space to be selfish is important. The selfish phase has valuable elements and it needs acceptance and humility to understand this.  This phase helped me be bloody minded towards my goal- of trying to be the best in the world. It helped me remain true to my goals and honest to them no matter the setback. It helped me stand up every time I fell down. Again, there were so many people who played a role in this phase – coaches who challenged me, competitors who pushed me and my parents and family who supported me no matter what I encountered.

A pivotal moment arrived in 2004, during the Athens Olympics, where I confronted what seemed to be my greatest setback in the shooting final.  As I left the arena and I felt my world was falling to pieces, an anonymous volunteer came up to me and consoled me.  Olympic athlete and Olympic volunteer, connected by empathy.

My failure in Athens catalysed a profound shift in my relationship with sport. No longer solely fixated on outcomes, I embraced the journey, finding fulfilment in the relentless pursuit of improvement and the cultivation of self-respect.  Explorer, dreamer and now philosopher. Sport does that to an athlete.

My coaches and mentors always talked about the process. But, the learning eventually is so experiential. One has to live it to really buy into it. This shift was important to remain motivated every day. To find the energy to show up everyday.  To find the excitement every day. I was moved by the quote I saw written on the walls of the Olympic Training Centre in Colorado Springs, where I was training – It is not every four  years, it is every day. I did tell you I had become a philosopher.

Understanding utter failure helped me remain curious, grounded, exploring and engaged in the daily rituals of sport.  I had no joy from the result and I had to find the joy in the day to day. My coaches and guides play a crucial role here to keep me balanced – hopeful and positive despite my feeling hopeless and negative. My coach U we was my fiercest critic but also the biggest believer in me when I was at my lowest ebb. After Athens he wrote me a letter which predicted I will win the world championships in 2006 and the Olympics in 2008.  Hearing this from him at that stage was huge encouragement. Making it come true was a vindication of our relationship.

The detachment from outcomes led to attachment to the small details. It was about having adaptability.  It taught me a lot about flexibility in mindset and acceptance. It taught me about life - that things will not always pan out the way you want to, but you need accept, you need to move on and try again. This meant that despite every failure I also succeeded in many ways. It was important to acknowledge that. That started the shift. To really find joy in the process. Little was I to realise that this phase was going to define me, and my response to my own journey to Olympic gold.

My journey with sport commenced as a quest to carve out a name for myself, fueled by the allure of fame and the prestige intertwined with athletic achievement. By the time I won Olympic gold, I was less excited about the outcome than I thought I would be. Yes, it was a first medal for India and meant a lot to my country and fellow Indians. I remember getting into a taxi in Mumbai and the driver turns to me and tells me that he and his family were very proud of my achievement. This made me realise how as athletes we can bring joy to others just by doing well what we are meant to do. Little incidents like this are memorable.

My Olympic achievement also meant a lot to people who were important to me – my coaches, parents and supporters. It brought a sense of self-belief in Indian athletes, which I still see growing every day – from being taunted, to being expected to win medals, it is satisfying to see the confidence with which my fellow Indian athletes go to the Olympics. For me, achieving Olympic glory was satisfying and deeply personal but what made me proudest was that I knew that I had done all I humanly could to prepare for that moment. The explorer, the dreamer and the philosopher all had come together when it mattered most.  

It raversed the valleys and the peaks of my sporting career. Following my crowning achievement as an Olympic champion, my relationship with sport underwent another metamorphosis. The weight of the achievement was overwhelming at first.  Human nature is that once you climb a peak you want to jump to the next. This makes you defensive. But, I learnt that I had to first climb down before attempting to climb up another peak. It requires a lot of energy.  I also realised that this is a very personal quest and may be difficult for other people to relate to or understand, and that was fine, too. So, for me, it was about doing what I had in my control -trying to keep perspective and keep going.

What I was now pursuing was not external validation but something more personal. I recall my last training session of the year on December 31st one year. I was to end with 100 sit ups. My trainer miscounted and said I was done. I said that’s only 95 and finished 5 more to end my year. It felt good to have become the person that would take no shortcuts. In fact, I am as proud of that moment as any other during my career.

From initially being adrift, I rediscovered purpose in the simple pleasure of honing my craft behind closed doors. It was during the solitary moments of practice that I embarked on a quest of self-discovery, pushing the boundaries of my capabilities with an insatiable curiosity. The little explorer boy being coached in the outdoors by Colonel Dhillon was back. Now, with fresh pastures to explore and new facets of myself to examine. I participated in two more Olympic Games, returning without a medal but with a deeper sense of self-respect than I had ever had.

At the heart of every competitive athlete's journey is the pursuit of excellence. But the athlete’s drive is not confined to surpassing competitors. It is also about continually overcoming one’s personal best, pushing the boundaries of the human potential. It is a quest that transcends the individual, inspiring a collective striving among athletes and the nations they represent.

How can I forget the shooting event where I forgot to bring ammunition to the final, when I walked across to my neighbouring shooter, borrowed his ammo and went on to win the event!

Upon retiring from competitive sport in 2016, my passion for the athletic arena endured, albeit in a different guise. Driven by a desire to empower the next generation of athletes, I sought avenues to meaningfully contribute to the sporting landscape. This ranged from active engagement in policy formulation on matters such as governance and athlete mental health to the establishment of cutting-edge sports science facilities in India. I wanted to contribute to athlete development in the country in an area where I felt there was a large gap.  I wanted to foster a culture of excellence and innovation and also share the learnings from my own journey. This phase gave me fresh purpose – could I now be meaningful in other athletes’ selfish phase, passing on the baton in a manner of speaking?

This was also about wanting to make a meaningful contribution and building a career outside the field of play.  At a personal level, my world view shifted and my biggest joy began coming from doing things for others. My perspective on life and purpose also changed.  It made me realise that while as athletes we do great things we are not really saving lives and that it is incumbent on us to push harder to contribute back to the societies that have supported our quests. To whom much is given, much should be expected.  

At the root of it all, I wanted others to know that no matter how gifted Olympic champions may be, we all have our vulnerabilities and limitations. No one is superhuman. It’s about trying. Trying every day. To get better than what you were yesterday.  

In recent years, my relationship with sport has evolved once again, transcending personal ambition to embrace a broader vision. I now perceive the profound impact of sports beyond mere competition - recognizing its capacity to shape individuals, instil character in youth, and catalyse societal change. Whether it's promoting inclusivity, fostering healthier lifestyles, or nurturing a sense of community and solidarity, I have been moved by the transformative potential of sports on both individual and collective levels. Working in partnership with one of my fiercest rivals in the shooting arena to support some members of the Olympic Refugee Team was a moving experience. I saw how sport changed their life. How it made them smile. How it gave them meaning.  It changed me, it made me smile and it gave me meaning, too.

It became evident to me that the path to excellence is illuminated by more than just the medals and records. It is also paved with the bonds of friendship that athletes forge across borders, cultures, and ideologies. These connections, built on mutual understanding and respect, turn fierce competitors into lifelong companions and transform the sporting arena into a space of global unity. I believe that respect goes beyond respecting the rules of the game or the judgment of referees—it extends to a profound respect for oneself, one's opponents, and the diverse cultures that converge at the Olympics. This respect fosters an environment where athletes not only compete but also celebrate the spirit of human diversity and potential.

This prompted me to think more deeply on how I can contribute to society through sport. I learnt that there is no greater joy in life than doing things for others, for being an enabler, for doing things selflessly. I also understood the real power of the 5 rings, and the Olympic movement which goes far beyond the 2 weeks of sports competition. I began actively participating in projects like the Olympic Forest Network and the Olympic Values Education Program(OVEP), which have been joyous experiences.

In about two years, OVEP has successfully reached over a quarter of a million young minds in just two Indian states and imparted the timeless values of Olympism through the dedicated efforts of 750 trained educators. The program promotes physical activity while increasing student attendance and helps mindset shifts to help communities realise that sport is as essential to their lives as classroom learning. I’m proud to say that by its implementation in their curriculum, OVEP is helping transform over 350 state-supported schools into hubs of active, engaged learning communities.

It has also given physical education teachers rightful respect within the school and the community and brought some special moments, for instance, where boys went from never having played sport with girls to selecting them as captains of their mixed-gender football team.

I now see the opportunity to help others look at sport and its potential through a different lens, to understand how sport can truly help in building community, solidarity and understanding. Elite sport is just one pillar of the many pillars that sustain this journey.  In a sense, each phase of my journey has been marked by meaningful evolution, underscoring the enduring significance of sport in shaping not just athletes, but entire communities, their perceptions, identity and much more.

We are constantly told that sports careers are hard and short. Do they need to be? If we take a wider view of a sports career we can move beyond the transactional, perhaps default, role of athletes as competitors and winners. If the value of an athlete’s life is going to only be assessed in the crucible of competition, we may feel that they have only one story to tell and one trick to play, again and again. My experience has been different, and I know it is not an isolated one. All of us have so many different things to offer others, our societies and the world. Athletes are no different.

As ambassadors of the values of excellence, friendship and respect, athletes embody the spirit of the Olympics in every sprint, every leap, and every stroke. They carry the torch of these ideals, not just in their performances but in their conduct off the field, influencing communities and inspiring the next generation.

I feel that sports environments, therefore, must be more than just competitive arenas; they need to be nurturing grounds that cultivate these values at every phase of an athlete's development. From the grassroots to the grandest stages like the Olympics, the nurturing of these values ensures that the legacy of sports as a medium of positive change continues. By fostering these values, sports can continue to offer hope, foster solidarity, and enhance the fabric of global society. Through these enduring values, sport remains a powerful catalyst for the betterment of humanity.

Athletes change the way we live, aspire and feel about ourselves and each other. They change too, living many lives in one lifetime, each offering something unique to society, but only if we can see the gifts they bear and remain open to their contributions. Of course, we must constantly think about how to enable athletes to have meaningful sports careers. Let us also think about how to enable them to live meaningful lives.

Athletes are the biggest assets for sports organisations and there has to be a way to continuously engage with the different phases of the athletes life beyond their playing days. In my experience, they will give returns on that investment many times over.  

As for me, as I witness the smiles and determination of young people embracing sport, I am reminded of my own moments on the podium. Through their journey, they are becoming more confident, empathetic, and responsible—qualities that are shaping them into healthier individuals and connected community members. Just like a medal lifts an athlete, sport lifts these young spirits, teaching them valuable life lessons. It's a gift that keeps on giving, and seeing it unfold is as rewarding as any championship I've ever won.

Thank you!

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