Asian Games: Combined archers complete gold hat-trick, lay LA Olympic marker

India continued its dominance in compound archery at the Asian Games by winning three gold medals at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park multi-purpose venue on Wednesday, September 30. India defended their titles in both the men’s and women’s composite team events, while Chikitha Taniparthi and Sahil Jadhav secured a quota place for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics by winning the mixed team event.

The women’s team of Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Chikitha and Prithika Pradeep started a gold rush, defeating China 238-234 in a dominant final. Chikitha and Sahil then held their nerve in a thrilling mixed team final against Korea, won 158-157 in a shootout to secure Olympic quota for India. The day ended with Sahil, Kushal Dalal and Ganesh Mani Ratnam Thirumuru defeating China 238-237 in the men’s team final.

India had won gold medals in all five composite events – men’s and women’s singles, men’s and women’s teams and mixed teams – in Hangzhou three years ago. Despite fielding a relatively young team in Aichi-Nagoya, India continued their golden run, winning all three team events on offer.

Jyothi, who won the women’s individual gold in Hangzhou, is competing in Aichi-Nagoya but failed to reach the quarterfinals after a disappointing qualifying round. Meanwhile, defending men’s individual champion Ojas Pravin Deotale did not make the Indian squad for this edition. However, the absence of Ojas and Jyothi’s early individual exit did not slow down the Indian compound archery contingent, which continued to maintain its lead over traditional powers Korea and China.

Both countries have stepped up their archery programs following the inclusion of the discipline on the Olympic programme, with mixed team archery set to make its debut at the Los Angeles Games.

However, India ensured that it stayed ahead of the competition in the golden middle.

WOMEN’S TEAM WORLD RECORD

India started the day’s medal run with a dominant performance by Jyothi, Chikitha and Prithika, who successfully defended the women’s composite team title. The Indian trio scored a world record 238 to beat China’s Wunier, Yue Wang and Fangyao Wei 238-234 to claim the first gold of the day.

The Indians set the tone from the opening end, scoring 60 to take a two-point lead over China. They maintained their advantage in the second end, again creating 60 and moving ahead 120-116. China closed the gap slightly in the third end, but India stayed level and led 178-176 going into the final end.

The pressure was on for China as they produced two nines while India produced a perfect final round of sixes. The total of 238 points equaled South Korea’s world record at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon and added another layer to a strong title defense.

The gold also offered redemption for Jyothi, who suffered a shock quarter-final exit in the individual competition after losing to 14-year-old Korean sensation Kang Yeon-seo. However, the veteran along with Chikitha and Prithika fought back strongly to retain the team title.

OLYMPIC QUOTA FOR MIXED TEAMS

Chikita and Sahil win gold in mixed team archery (PTI Photo)

Chikitha and Sahil then produced the most dramatic finish of India’s three gold medal wins, beating Korea’s Jungyoon Park and Choi Eun Gyu 158-157 after a shootout in the mixed team final.

Their victory meant more than just a gold medal. The Indian pair secured a quota place for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, making India the first country to qualify for the mixed team event, which will make its Olympic debut at the Games.

The Indians started strong, taking a 40-39 lead after a series of perfect 10s in the opening end. They extended their lead to two points in the second end before Korea started to fight back. A nine from Chikith reduced India’s lead to one point with the Indian pair leading 118-117 after three ends.

Korea then produced a perfect score and put India under huge pressure. The Indians needed two perfect 10s from their last two arrows to win outright. Chikitha again found the nine but Sahil held his nerve and hit 10 to level the scores and force a shootout.

There was no room for error in decision-making. Both Chikitha and Sahil found the 10-ring, while Choi could only manage a nine, sealing India’s second gold of the day and an Olympic quota.

India reached the final after defeating Thailand 156-155 in the semi-final.

DOUBLE FOR SAHIL AS WINNING MEN’S TEAM

India completed their gold medal in the last event of the day as Kushal Dalal, Sahil and Ganesh held their nerve to beat China 238-237 in a thrilling men’s team final.

The Chinese trio of Jiahao Liao, Jinyi Liu and Jingyu Shi pressured the defending champions all the way, but the Indian trio managed to stay ahead when it mattered most. The one-point victory allowed India to retain the men’s team title and complete a clean sweep of three composite team events.

It was a particularly memorable day for Sahil. After combining with the mixed team gold and Olympic quotas earlier in the day, Chikitha bounced back to help India overcome China in the men’s final to finish with two gold medals.

The win also highlighted India’s depth in compound archery. With neither defending singles champion Ojas Pravin Deotale nor Hangzhou singles champion Jyothi absent from the individual events this time around, the younger members of the team stepped up when it mattered.

India won all five composite gold medals at the Hangzhou Asian Games. With three team golds already secured in Aichi-Nagoya, Chikitha and Ganesh Mani Ratnam now look to complete another clean sweep when they square off in the individual quarter-finals on Thursday.

If they go all the way, India could win five gold medals out of five in compound archery at these Asian Games – matching their perfect run from Hangzhou. (With PTI inputs)

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