Teenage Indian archer Sheetal Devi has become a worldwide sensation at the Paris Paralympics 2024. At just the age of 17, she is the only female armless athlete in this edition. She teamed up with Rakesh Kumar. After a tough loss in the semifinals, they made a glorious comeback. On September 2, they won a bronze medal. They defeated Italy’s Eleonora Sarti and Matteo Bonacina. They scored 156-155 in the mixed-team compound archery competition.
It is the second time that India has won a medal in the Paralympics in archery. Three years ago, Harvinder Singh took home an individual bronze at the Tokyo Olympics 2021. Sheetal even became the first Indian woman to win an archery medal at the Paralympics. Her coach, Kuldeep Vedhwan, stands with lots of happiness in his eyes.
Who Is Sheetal Devi?
Sheetal was diagnosed with phocomelia, which is a rare medical condition. She was born with severely underdeveloped arms. But this didn’t stop her from growing into a confident child. She was born in Kashmir. India secured the win after Sheetal’s final shot was upgraded from a9 to a10. This change came after a revision. A similar situation occurred earlier in the semi-final against Iran. That time, the Indians were on the losing end.
The Indian duo shot 10, 9, 10 10 in the end to reach 155. The Italian pair answered with 9, 9, 10, 10 to draw level at 155-155. It was at a point that the judge decided to take a closer look at Sheetal’s shot. They concluded that it was a 10, which led to India’s victory.
Brilliant Comeback
It was an unbelievable comeback by the Indians after they failed in the shoot-off. It followed a dramatic semifinal clash against Iran’s Fatemeh Hemmati and Hadi Nori. Both Rakesh and Sheetal failed to win medals in the individual event at the Paris Paralympics 2024.
Earlier this Monday, the Indian mixed team was close to making it to the finals. However, a strong comeback from the Iranian team and a score revision by a judge stopped them. The scores of matches were tied at 152-152, which led to a shoot-off.
The Iranian duo defeated Brazil’s Jane Karla Gogel and Reinaldo Vagner Charao Ferreira 153-151 in their quarterfinal match.
About Rakesh Kumar
Rakesh is 39 years old. He suffered a spinal cord injury. After recovering in 2009, he realized he would be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. This drove him into depression and made him think about ending his own life.
Currently, India is in the 15th position at the Paralympics points table with 15 medals, 3 Gold, 5 Silver, and 7 Bronze. Wishing many more to come.
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