Archery has a long and fascinating history in the Olympic Games. While it first appeared in the 1900 Paris Games, its appearance had not been a continuous affair.
After a 52-year break following the 1920 Antwerp Games, archery returned to the Olympic roaster in the 1972 Munich Olympics, and since then it has been an integral feature of the Olympics.
However, only the recurve discipline is currently contested at the Olympic level, as compound archery continues to be sidelined.
South Korea have been the dominant force in Olympic archery, having an impressive collection of 27 gold medals, with the majority of the medals coming in the last few decades.
The sport continues to evolve, with the introduction of team and mixed-team events. There were changes in the competition format aimed at enhancing the spectator experience and pushing Archery ahead.
Since 2004, Olympic archery events have graced renowned venues like the Panathinaikos Stadium (2004), Lord’s Cricket Ground (2012), and the Sambodromo (2016).
Continuing this tradition, the 2024 Paris Games will feature archery at the iconic Esplanade des Invalides, a wide public esplanade.
The Paris 2024 Olympics marks a significant moment for Indian archery. After years of dubious performances, India fielded a strong contingent of six archers, competing in all five categories: men’s and women’s individual recurve events, men’s and women’s, and mixed team events).
Indian archers at Paris Olympics
India’s archery team, a blend of seasoned veterans like Tarundeep Rai and Deepika Kumari and promising newcomers like Dhiraj Bommadevara and Bhajan Kaur, heads to Paris with high hopes.
The Indian archers have recently done exceptionally well. They have also been in impressive form, securing medals at multiple stages of the Archery World Cup, which has fueled India’s optimism.
With participation in all five categories, Indian archers have an opportunity to make a significant mark in Paris and will enter the Games as dark horses.
However, the road to glory is not without challenges. The team must overcome the weight of poor performances in the erstwhile Olympics, navigate through a field of world-class competitors and manage the distraction of a coaching controversy.
Despite these obstacles, India’s realistic medal prospects shine brightest in the mixed team and men’s team events, where they have demonstrated consistent success, including a mind-blowing win against Korea in the final at the Archery World Cup Stage 1 in Shanghai in April.
The nation eagerly awaits to see if the Indian archers can hit the bullseye and bring home Olympic glory.
Indian archery contingent at the Paris Olympics
Men’s Individual and Team: Tarundeep Rai, Dhiraj Bommadevara, and Pravin Jadhav.
Women’s Individual and Team: Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat and Bhajan Kaur.
Mixed Team: 1 Indian pair to be decided after the ranking round. The top finisher from each gender will compete with the other 15 nations.
Medal Prospects
India have the potential to win medals across all five categories.
The positivity remains high within the Indian archery camp, with the Sports Authority of India’s High-Performance Director Sanjeeva Singh predicting multiple medals for Indian archers.
But realistically, India will have high hopes for the men’s and mixed-team pairings.
The trio of Tarundeep-Dhiraj-Pravin has already defeated the mighty reigning Olympic champion Korea at the 2023 Shanghai World Cup.
The Indian men’s team will be looking to recreate the same scenario again in Paris.
Also, Deepika Kumari will embark on a new Olympic journey as a mother, and the determined Dhiraj Bommadevara can pull off massive upsets and bow towards glory.
Schedule (Indian Standard Timing)
25th July
Women’s Individual – Ranking Round – 1:00 PM
Men’s Individual- Ranking Round- 5:45 PM
28th July
Women’s Team Pre-Quarter Finals to Gold Medal Match – 1:00 PM onwards to 9:00 PM.
29th July
Men’s Team Pre-Quarter Finals to Gold Medal Match – 1:00 PM onwards to 9:00 PM.
30th July
Men’s & Women’s Individual Round of 64 and Round of 32 – 3:30 PM onwards to 11:55 PM.
31st July
Men’s & Women’s Individual Round of 64 and Round of 32 – 3:30 PM onwards to 11:55 PM.
1st August
Men’s & Women’s Individual Round of 64 and Round of 32 – 1:00 PM onwards to 10:55 PM.
2nd August
Mixed Team Pre-Quarters to Gold Medal Match – 1:00 PM onwards to 8:30 PM.
3rd August
Women’s Individual Pre-Quarters to Gold Medal Match – 1:00 PM onwards to 8:30 PM.
4th August
Men’s Individual Pre-Quarters to Gold Medal Match – 1:00 PM onwards to 8:30 PM.
Indian archers at previous Olympics
Despite having a long history of archery and competing in the Olympics since the 1988 Seoul Games, India have not won an Olympic medal in archery yet.
Deepika Kumari entered the 2012 and 2020 Olympics as the world’s top-ranked female archer, carrying the hopes of a medal but failed to impress.
The pressure took the better of the Indian contingent, succumbing to score on various occasions.
However, the Indian men’s, women’s and mixed teams have come close to the glory in the past. But they also missed out on the sem-final berths on every occasion.
Deepika Kumari remains the sole individual athlete who reached the quarterfinals.
The hope is that Indian archers will be able to change the anomaly this time around.