Indian recurve archer Neeraj Chauhan stunned South Korea’s three-time Olympic team gold medallist Kim Je-deok to enter the men’s individual quarter-finals at the Asian Games on Tuesday.
Neeraj prevailed 6-4 over Je-deok at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square. Je-deok had won gold in the mixed team and men’s team events at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics before defending the men’s team title at Paris 2024.
Neeraj took a 3-1 lead before Je-deok fought back to level the contest at 3-3. The fourth set ended in a tie, making it 4-4, before the Indian held his nerve to win the deciding set and seal the victory.
Dhiraj Bommadevara, who became the second Indian to win the recurve men’s title at the Archery World Cup Final earlier this month, also advanced to the quarter-finals with a 6-2 victory over Chinese Taipei’s Cheng Hsiang-Hui.
Dhiraj will face Uzbekistan’s Amirkon Sadikov in the quarter-finals, while Neeraj will take on Bhutan’s Dorji Lam on Saturday.
In the round of 32, Dhiraj defeated the Philippines’ Girvin Garcia 6-0, winning all three sets. Neeraj overcame Indonesia’s Riau Ega Agata 6-4 after trailing 0-4.
Earlier, India’s men’s and women’s recurve teams advanced to the semifinals after defeating China and Chinese Taipei, respectively, in their quarter-final contests on Sunday.
The men’s team comprising Dhiraj, Neeraj and Yashdeep Bhoge defeated China 5-1, while the women’s team of Kumkum Anil Mohod, Kirti Sharma and Ankita Bhakat registered a 6-0 win over Chinese Taipei to enter the semifinals. The recurve mixed team of Dhiraj and Kumkum Anil Mohod had also progressed to the last four.
All three Indian teams will play their semifinals on October 2. The men’s team will face Iran, the women’s team will take on China, while the mixed team will meet Japan.
Eight quota places for the LA28 Olympic Games are at stake at the Asian Games. Two quota places each are available in the men’s and women’s recurve individual events, while the champions in the recurve mixed team and compound mixed team events will secure one men’s and one women’s quota place each.
India had its most successful archery campaign at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023, winning a record nine medals, including five gold, two silver and two bronze.
(IANS Inputs)
