The women’s combine emerged triumphant in an edge-of-the-seat thriller while the men’s outfit secured the top prize without fuss as Indian compound archers swept all three gold medals on offer in team events, further bettering their best-ever show at the Asian Games, here on Thursday.
The women’s compound team edged Chinese Taipei by the thinnest of margins, securing the gold medal win by just one point with Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Aditi Swami and Parneet Kaur shooting 60 out of 60 in the final round of a heart-stopping final.
Having knocked out two-time defending champions South Korea, the Chinese Taipei trio of Chen Yi-Hsuan, Huang I-Jou and Wang Lu-Yun fought till the end but the top-seeded Indian team won 230-229.
The scores were locked 200-200 till the last set but the young Indian team that has two teenagers — Aditi and Parneet — remained ice-cool to find three more 10s in the final three arrows.
It put the pressure back on their opponents who were to shoot last and needed to match with three 10s to force a shootoff. But Chinese Taipei started off with a nine that sealed the gold for India.
Having conquered the world less than two months back, it also completed India women’s compound team’s domination by becoming the Asian champions.
In the afternoon session, the men’s trio of Abhishek Verma, Ojas Deotale and Prathamesh Jawkar downed South Koreans 235-230 to seal their sixth medal in archery.
India’s second gold in archery also assured the country of at least five medals in archery at the ongoing Asian Games.
India’s archery team achieved remarkable success at the Asian Games, with Jyothi securing a double gold, including one in the compound mixed team event with Ojas Deotale. Jyothi is poised for a potential hat-trick of gold medals as she competes for the Asian Games title against South Korea’s So Chaewon in the compound individual final. India is assured of at least five medals in archery at this edition. The team’s previous best showing was at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, where they secured one gold, one silver, and one bronze. Jyothi expressed gratitude to the fans and looked forward to the individual final. The final match was a closely contested affair, with both teams performing impressively, and India emerged victorious with three perfect 10s.
Compound men’s team emulates women’s success
The compound men’s team of Ojas Deotale, Prathamesh Jawkar and Abhishek Verma, who are seeded second, followed the suit of the women’s trio to storm into the final with two lopsided wins. Veteran Verma dropped four points but that did not matter much as the young duo of Deotale and Jawkar were on a 10-hitting spree to down Bhutan 235-221 in the quarterfinals.
Chinese Taipei were no match to the Indians who once again totalled 235, en route to the final.
PM Narendra Modi lauds ‘Golden Girls’
Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the ‘Golden Girls’ Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Aditi Gopichand, and Parneet Kaur in archery for producing another stellar performance at the 19th Asian Games on Thursday. The Indian archery compound women’s team featuring Jyothi, Aditi, and Parneet clinched a gold medal in Hangzhou. “India’s Women Archers win the Gold Medal in the Compound Team event! Congratulations to @VJSurekha, @Parrneettt, and Aditi Gopichand! Their flawless performance, focus, and dedication have made our nation incredibly proud. This victory is a testament to their exceptional skill and teamwork,” PM Modi wrote on his X (formerly Twitter) handle.
