World Archery C'ships: Indian women’s recurve team reach bronze match

India’s women’s recurve team of Deepika Kumari, Gatha Khadake, and Ankita Bhakat kept their medal hopes alive at the World Archery Championships by reaching the bronze medal playoff on Tuesday.

They will take on hosts South Korea, aiming to end a ten-year wait for a recurve women’s team medal at the Worlds.

In the qualification rounds, four-time Olympian Deepika Kumari shot 677 points to finish sixth, while teenager Gatha Khadake scored 666 (14th place) and Ankita Bhakat managed 656 (30th place). Their combined effort secured third spot in the team rankings, giving India a direct passage to the second round.

The trio justified their seeding, outclassing Slovenia 5-1 and staging a fightback to down Turkey 6-2 in the quarterfinals. Their run ended in the semifinals, where Japan clinched a 6-2 win, taking advantage of Indian errors in the final set.

In the men’s recurve section, India entered as the ninth-ranked team. Neeraj Chauhan shot 670 (36th place), Olympian Dhiraj Bommadevara tallied 669 (39th place), and Rahul registered 657 (62nd place). Despite a promising line-up, they crashed out in the opening round against Denmark. The match was forced into a shoot-off, but India’s 26 points fell short of Denmark’s 28, resulting in a 4-5 loss.

India’s recurve mixed team, consisting of Deepika Kumari and Neeraj Chauhan, entered the competition as the seventh seeds. Their campaign ended in the Round of 16, where they lost to Japan in a 4-5 shoot-off.

Compound section: close calls but no medals

India’s run in the compound category also came to an end without any individual medals, as Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Parneet Kaur, and Prithika Pradeep fell short in their respective events.

The standout performer was 20-year-old Parneet Kaur, who narrowly missed out on the podium. She finished fourth overall, going down 144-145 to Colombia’s Alejandra Usquiano in the bronze medal match. Parneet struggled to find rhythm early, failing to post a perfect 30 until the fourth end, while Usquiano’s consistency proved decisive.

Earlier in the knockout rounds, Parneet had impressed with a 149-147 win over senior teammate Jyothi in the quarterfinals, before losing a nail-biting semifinal 142-143 to Guatemala’s Sofia Paiz.

For Jyothi, a seasoned archer making her seventh World appearance, this marked her first time since 2017 returning home without an individual medal. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Prithika Pradeep exited in the pre-quarterfinals, losing 143-146 to Hazal Burun of Turkey.

So far, India’s medal haul at the championships stands at two, comprising a historic gold in the men’s compound team event -secured by Aman Saini, Rishabh Yadav, and Prathamesh Bhalchandra Fuge, and a mixed compound team silver won by Rishabh Yadav and Jyothi Surekha Vennam