Asian Para Games: Sheetal Devi equals world record, sets new mixed team record with Toman Kumar

Sheetal Devi (Pic: Olympics)

Indian archery star Sheetal Devi enjoyed a historic outing at the Asian Para Games on Monday, matching the world record in the women's compound qualification round before partnering with Toman Kumar to establish a new world mark in the mixed team event.

The armless archer, who utilises her feet and legs to position the compound bow while employing her shoulder and jaw to pull and release the string, recorded a remarkable 704 points out of 720 during the ranking round. This performance equalled the world record and set a new Asian record. Sheetal then combined with Toman, who scored 698 in men's qualification, to reach a combined score of 1,402 points, breaking the former world record of 1,400 in the compound mixed team ranking round.

Sheetal Devi had previously held the mixed team world mark alongside Rakesh Kumar. The milestone earned Sheetal and Toman direct entry into the quarterfinals, where they will compete against either Iraq or Japan.

Earlier, the 19-year-old archer from Jammu and Kashmir delivered a dominant display at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square, shooting 57 perfect 10s from 72 arrows, including 32 Xs. She surpassed the previous Asian record of 698 points by six points. Turkiye's Oznur Girdi previously set the 704-point world record at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games. The Paris Paralympics bronze medalist also improved on her own Asian Para Games record of 680 points set at Hangzhou in 2023.

Debutant Payal Nag shines as Indian Recurve squads impress

Debutant Payal Nag also delivered a strong showing in the women's compound qualification, posting 675 points to finish fifth. The quadruple amputee from Odisha gained fame in April by defeating Sheetal en route to a World Archery Para Series gold in Bangkok. The joint efforts of Sheetal and Payal placed India atop the women's compound team standings with 1,379 points, well ahead of second-placed China (1,338 points), securing a direct semifinal entry.

In men's recurve action, Paralympic gold medalist Harvinder Singh led the team by finishing fifth in the ranking round with 631 points, while Vijay Sundi ended seventh with 630 points. Their combined efforts placed India top of the men's recurve team rankings with 1,261 points. In women's recurve qualification, Bhawna placed second with 616 points, and Pooja finished ninth with 561 points, securing second place for India in the team standings.

(With inputs from PTI)