Did Ankita Bhakat Outshine Olympic Medallist Nam Su-hyeon to Claim Gold?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Ankita Bhakat won the women’s recurve individual gold.
- She defeated Olympic silver medallist Nam Su-hyeon.
- The final score was 7-3.
- India's men's team won gold for the first time since 2007.
- Sangeeta secured a bronze medal in the women's individual event.
Dhaka, Nov 14 (NationPress) India's Ankita Bhakat achieved a significant milestone by besting Korea's Nam Su-hyeon, the individual silver medallist from the Paris Olympics, with a score of 7-3 to claim the women’s recurve individual gold at the Asian Archery Championships held here on Friday.
In the initial set, Ankita established an early advantage, scoring 29-27. The Korean competitor responded by equalizing in the second set. Despite a 3-1 lead, Ankita lost the third set with a score of 26-28, resulting in a tie at 3-3 during the final match.
Displaying resilience, Ankita rebounded in the fourth set, shooting double 10s to regain the lead at 5-3. In the decisive fifth set, Ankita excelled, hitting double 10s and concluding with a 9, totaling 29 to secure the gold medal with a final score of 7-3.
In the semifinals, Ankita showcased her competitive edge by defeating five-time Olympian and fellow Indian Deepika Kumari in a nail-biting shoot-off with a score of 6-5. Following a strong start, she led 4-0 after the second set, but Deepika mounted a comeback by winning the last two sets to tie the match at 5-5. Ultimately, Ankita triumphed in the shoot-off, securing her place in the finals.
Earlier, Ankita had triumphed over top seed Jang Minhee to set up the all-Indian semifinal clash. Sangeeta, another Indian archer, experienced a setback in her semifinal against Nam Su-hyeon, losing 0-6. However, Sangeeta wrapped up the recurve women’s individual event with a bronze medal, defeating Deepika 6-5 in another thrilling shoot-off.
Earlier in the day, the Indian men's recurve team made history by defeating Korea in the finals, marking their first win in this competition since 2007. The team, featuring Yashdeep Bhoge, Atanu Das, and Rahul, won by a narrow margin of 5-4 following a shoot-off where both teams shot 29, but India clinched the gold as Rahul's arrow was nearest to the center.
Meanwhile, the mixed team of Anshika Kumari and Yashdeep faced defeat against the Korean duo of Jang Minhee and Seo Mingi in the bronze medal match.