With Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Abhinav Bindra superior talent for shooting events, India already established itself as a shooting hub. In the 2012 London Olympics, with Gagan Narang bronze medal in shooting, pressure started building upon an individual named Vijay Kumar Sharma. India had yet to win any medals in pistol shooting this was where Vijay Kumar Sharma delivered. He won the silver medal in 25 rapid-fire pistol events of the London Olympics.
The son of a former army man, Vijay was fascinated by guns at an early age. In fact, his career as a sportsman was similar to that of Rathore. Both of their shooting careers took root during the time they were serving in the Indian Army. He was transferred to the Army Marksmanship Unit a couple of years later where he began training professionally under Russian coach Pavel Smirnov.
While in Olympics, International Shooting Federation (ISSF) changed the shooting format for rapid-fire. It turned into a drastic change where most of the big talents couldn't sustain the change and got eliminated. But that didn't hinder Vijay Kumar Sharma, and later brought a silver medal.
Unlike others, Vijay chose to live a simple life and to stay away from the limelight. In 2017 he retired from the army and pursued further studies. He is currently serving DSP in Himachal Pradesh Police.