Indian archers will look to break an anomaly when they train their bow and arrow on the bullseye at the Esplanade des Invalides, a public square in Paris transformed into an archery venue.
The Indian archers have always performed brilliantly at international events but failed to sustain the expectations and put up miserable shows at the Olympics.
This time around the archers, who have been in magnificent form, will look to seize the medal drought and open the account.
The Indian archery contingent, comprising veterans and newcomers, will enter all five categories with high hopes of securing podium finishes.
The recent success of Indian archers on the various stages of the Archery World Cup, including an upset over South Korea by the men’s team, demonstrated the potential the Indians are carrying into the Paris Olympics.
However, the contingent’s participation at the Paris Olympics is not without a hiccup.
The contingent’s Korean coach Baek Woong Ki has been denied accreditation, and Arvind Kumar, the team’s physiotherapist, has been facing an allegation of misconduct. Despite these setbacks, the archers remain focused on putting their best foot forward.
Players, Expectations and Investments
With India contesting in all five categories, six Indians have qualified. The archers are Dhiraj Bommadevara, Pravin Jadhav, Tarundeep Rai, Deepika Kumari, Bhajan Kaur, and Ankita Bhakat.
The athletes have gone through a training-cum-acclimatisation stint at Compiegne in France, and the Indian archers were among the first batch of athletes from the country to enter the Games Village.
The Indian contingent has already gone through their first training session in Paris and they must be feeling relaxed and confident now.
The Indian government has invested wisely, spending INR 39.18 crores on archery since 2021. This fund allocation helped archers to attend 41 national camps and compete in 24 international trips.
Given the contingent’s form and recent performance, Sanjeeva Singh, SAI’s high-performance director, predicted three medals. He sees realistic medal chances in men’s individual, men’s team, and mixed team events. A woman’s medal would be a bonus, he stated.
Rankings and Records
The Olympic record in the qualification round is held by Korea’s An San (680/720) in the women’s category and while the record for the men’s category belongs to Kim Woo Jin of Korea (700/720).
| Athlete’s Name | World Rankings | Average Arrow Score | Qualification Round Best | Winning Percentage |
| 1. Dhiraj Bommadevara | 12 | 9.27 | 693 | 69% |
| 2. Tarundeep Rai | 31 | 9.18 | 684 | 61% |
| 3. Pravin Jadhav | 114 | 9.16 | 676 | 49% |
| 4. Deepika Kumari | 12 | 9.10 | 686 | 73% |
| 5. Ankita Bhakat | 40 | 8.89 | 673 | 59% |
| 6. Bhajan Kaur | 45 | 8.94 | 668 | 67% |
India’s archers are the perfect mixture of experience and youth. Their recent successes demonstrated their talent, form and preparation for the Olympics.
A historic Olympic medal is within reach. Consistent performances would cement India’s rising status in world archery.
The team’s unwavering dedication and form keep their ultimate goal clear, as they aim to etch their names in archery’s history books.