Jammu para archers hit bull's-eye at Asian championship

Jammu, November 23

After their stellar performance at the Asian Para Games held recently at Hangzhou, China, para archers from Jammu have once again attained a remarkable feat by clinching six of total nine medals for India in the Asian Para Archery Championships held at Bangkok.

Trained and groomed at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board (SMVDSB) Sports Complex, the para-archers, including Rakesh Kumar, Sheetal Devi and Sarita, have once again held the country’s flag high. India topped the medal tally by bagging four gold and silver each and one bronze in which para-archers from Jammu contributed six medals.

Incredible feat

What an incredible achievement! Para archers from J&K scripted history and brought glory to India… consistent performances of our archers reflect hard work & perseverance. This is just the beginning of a new sporting era. —Manoj Sinha, Lieutenant governor

Rakesh Kumar led the Indian challenge with a hat-trick of gold by clinching the men’s compound open crown with a win over Indonesia. He partnered Suraj Singh to win the men’s compound open doubles against Chinese contestants, besides winning the mixed team gold with Sheetal Devi defeating Indonesia.

Fourth gold for India was contributed by the phenomenal para-archer Sheetal Devi along with Jyoti in women’s compound open team event against Korea. However, she had to settle for silver in the tiebreaker against Singapore. Sarita had already won a bronze in the women’s individual compound category.

SMVDSB Chief Executive Officer Anshul Garg expressed pride in the accomplishments of para-archers trained at the sports complex of the board at the international arena and congratulated them for bringing laurels to the country.

He stressed the glory earned in the games and the emergence of budding sportspersons as new icons

was giving new impetus to the board’s sports complex.

Besides securing five medals in the recent held Para Asian Games, the para-archers of Jammu bagged three medals at Czech Republic Para Archery World Championship in July. They also also won quota places for the 2024 Paralympics in Paris. Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha congratulated the Para Archers from the UT for their achievement at Asian Para Archery Championships.

“What an incredible achievement! Para archers from J&K scripted history & brought glory to India by winning six medals, including four gold, one silver and one bronze each at Para Asian Archery Championship. The consistent performances of our archers reflect hard work & perseverance” the L-G posted on X.

He further stated that the outstanding performances of Sheetal, Rakesh and Sarita after admirable achievement at Asian Para Games, exemplify true spirit of sportsmanship. “This is just the beginning of a new sporting era. My best wishes to all athletes for their future endeavours” he said.