Gagan Narang celebrates his 37th birthday on May 06, 2020 (Tuesday). Born in Chennai to a Punjabi family, Narang took up shooting after being inspired by the character of James Bond from the 007 franchise. Narang was first Indian to qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games in London four year after disappointing at the same event in Beijing. Narang was among the favourites from India tipped to return with a medal but he failed to reach the finals of 10m Air Rifle and had to return empty-handed. But Gagan redeemed himself with a bronze medal in 2012 making him only the fourth shooter from the country to win a medal at Olympics. Narang is also the last Indian shooter to win a medal at the Olympics. Olympic Medallist Gagan Narang Says 'Ex-Players Getting into Coaching Has Helped Indian Athletes'.

Narang was born to Bhimsen Narang and his wife Amarjit on this day in 1983. His father was a chief manager of Indian airline Air India and his job assignments shifted the family from one place to another. Although they originally hail from Simla Gujran village of Haryana’s Panipat district, Gagan Narang was born in Chennai and grew up in Hyderabad where he took up shooting. On his 37th birthday, take a look at some lesser-known or interesting facts about the ace Indian shooter.

  • Gagan Narang was born to Bhimsen and Amarjit in Chennai, Tamil Nadu on May 06, 1983

  • Gagan Narang is a fan of Jams Bond movies and took up shooting after getting inspired by the British agent 007

  • Narang is an Olympic medallist and won the bronze medal at the 2012 London Games

  • Gagan Narang holds a rare record of winning four shooting medals in successive Commonwealth Games events

  • Narang holds the world record in men's 10m Air Rifle with 600 points in the qualification round

  • Gagan Narang was awarded the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award in 2011

Gagan started focusing in shooting after he was gifted a toy pistol by his father, who one revealed that Gagan’s first spark in shooting was visible when he shot balloons with his toy pistol. Gagan Narang has gone on to win several medals for India at the international level and has many records to his name.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 06, 2020 08:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).