Two gold medals, one extraordinary athlete — and a minister who made sure the nation stopped to notice. Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday, 22 October 2026, took to X to celebrate a stunning double by para archer Sheetal Devi at the Asian Para Games 2026, calling it 'a proud moment for India.'

Sheetal Devi's golden double — what she won

Gadkari extended his 'heartiest congratulations' to Sheetal Devi and teammate Toman Kumar for clinching gold in the Para Archery Compound Mixed Team event. But Sheetal did not stop there — she returned to the range and took individual honours as well, winning gold in the Para Compound Women's Individual Final. Two events, two gold medals, one session of competition at the Games.

Gadkari described her performance as showcasing 'exceptional precision, resilience and sporting excellence' — words that, given the sport, are also a precise description of what compound para archery demands: drawing bows with adapted release aids under immense physical and mental pressure, landing arrows in a ten-ring target across distances that leave almost no margin for error.

Sheetal Devi — India's compound phenomenon

Sheetal Devi has been one of the most watched names in Indian para archery at international compound events. Her emergence on the Asian para-sports circuit marks the kind of trajectory Indian para athletes have increasingly carved out since successive governments ramped up funding and infrastructure for para sports through the 2010s. Medals at events like the Asian Para Games have become a measure of how that investment translates to podium finishes on the continent's biggest stage.

The Asian Para Games is a quadrennial multi-sport competition for athletes with disabilities across Asia, organised by the Asian Paralympic Committee. A gold here carries the weight of continental supremacy — and for compound archery, where India has been building depth, a mixed-team gold alongside an individual gold on the same day is a headline result.

Mixed-team format and what Toman Kumar's role means

The mixed-team compound event pairs one male and one female archer, combining their scores across alternating ends. That makes Toman Kumar's contribution inseparable from the gold — both athletes had to deliver under pressure for India to top the podium. Gadkari named him alongside Sheetal in his congratulatory message, a deliberate recognition that team gold is, by definition, shared glory.

India's para sports community has repeatedly flagged that recognition from senior ministers amplifies visibility for athletes who often compete far from mainstream broadcast coverage. A congratulatory post from a cabinet-level figure reaches millions of followers instantly — the hashtag #Cheer4Bharat in Gadkari's post signals a coordinated effort to push para-sports achievements into the national conversation.

Two golds from one archer in a single Games is the kind of result that benchmarks India's compound para archery against the best in Asia — and sets the bar for every competition that follows.