The Recurve team astounds the Olympic champions from Korea, securing the gold at the Archery World Cup

The triumphant Indian men’s recurve contingent, comprised of Dhiraj Bommadevara, Tarundeep Rai, and Pravin Jadhav, astounded the reigning Olympic champions, South Korea, clinching a historic victory to claim the gold medal at the Archery World Cup after a lapse of 14 years.

This remarkable achievement, achieved by the archery powerhouse after more than a decade, also bolsters their prospects of securing a position in the forthcoming Paris Olympics.

Tarundeep, a 40-year-old Army veteran, was also a pivotal member of the gold medal-winning squad at the Shanghai World Cup Stage 4 in 2010, where India triumphed over Japan. In a showdown between the top two contenders of the tournament, India emerged victorious with a score of 5-1 (57-57, 57-55, 55-53).

The mixed recurve team of Ankita Bhakat and Dhiraj convincingly defeated Alejandra Valencia and Matias Grande of Mexico 6-0 (35-31, 38-35, 39-37) to clinch the bronze medal.

In a remarkable comeback after missing the entirety of 2023, Deepika Kumari stumbled at the final hurdle, settling for the silver medal in the women’s individual recurve category. The former world No. 1, who commenced her journey from the bottom as the 30th seed, ousted Korean opponents in the quarterfinals and semifinals. However, in the final showdown, Deepika succumbed to Hangzhou Asian Games champion Lim Sihyeon in straight sets, conceding 6-0 (26-27, 27-29, 27-28).

Maintaining composure, in the men’s team final, India confronted their perennial rivals, South Korea, boasting two members from the Tokyo Olympics gold medal-winning team, Kim Woojin and Kim Je Deok, alongside Lee Woo Seok.

However, the Indian trio delivered three impeccable 10s, including two Xs (bull’s eyes), and three 9s to match their opponents’ performance in the opening set.

While the Koreans faltered twice, hitting the 8-ring, the Indians showcased precision with four flawless 10s, including three Xs, to secure the second set. In the subsequent set, the Koreans managed only 53 points as the Indians maintained their composure to clinch victory.

“The nerves always surge when facing Korea in the final. Yet, now, our ability to overcome them stands unquestionable,” affirmed former Commonwealth Games gold medallist Rahul Banerjee, a member of the Shanghai 2010 team. “They’ve displayed impeccable form since the qualifying rounds, marking this victory as one of archery’s greatest. They must now sustain this momentum until Paris,” he added.

Presently, India holds a solitary Olympic berth, earned by Dhiraj in the men’s individual category. The upcoming Stage 3 World Cup in June serves as the final Olympic qualifying event. The two highest-ranked nations failing to secure qualification from the qualifiers will obtain team berths for Paris based on the World Archery rankings. India, currently third in the world rankings with 231 points, trails behind South Korea (340) and China (241).