-Indian Men’s Team Secures Historic Gold, Mixed Team Wins Silver
Gwangju/Patiala, 7 September (Sports Desk)
In a historic achievement, the Indian men’s compound team of Rishabh Yadav, Aman Saini, and Prathamesh Fuge won India’s first-ever gold medal in the men’s compound team event at the World Archery Championships 2025 in Gwangju, South Korea, on Sunday, defeating France 235-233. Meanwhile, India’s mixed compound team, featuring Rishabh Yadav and Jyothi Surekha Vennam, secured a silver medal after a narrow 157-155 loss to the Netherlands in the final.
The second-seeded Indian men’s team displayed exceptional resilience, overcoming a 59-57 deficit in the first set to edge out the fifth-seeded French trio of Nicolas Girard, Jean Philippe Boulch, and François Dubois in the final. Their remarkable journey included come-from-behind victories in all four matches: a shoot-off win against Australia (232(30)-232(28)) after a first-round bye, a 234-233 triumph over the USA in the quarter-finals, and a 234-232 victory against third-seeded Turkiye in the semi-finals. Top seeds South Korea were unexpectedly eliminated by Slovenia in the quarter-finals.
Rishabh Yadav, a 23-year-old debutant at the World Championships, emerged as a standout performer, finishing eighth in qualification with 709 points. His form carried into the mixed team event, where he partnered with Jyothi Surekha Vennam, India’s top-ranked women’s compound archer and third seed in qualification with 707 points. The duo powered through victories against Germany (160-152), El Salvador (157-153), and Chinese Taipei (157-155) to reach the final. Despite a strong start, leading 39-38 after the first set, they fell short against the Netherlands, settling for silver.
For Jyothi, 29, this marked her second mixed team silver at the World Championships, following her podium finish with Abhishek Verma in Yankton 2021. However, the women’s team event saw an early exit for the third-seeded Indian trio of Jyothi, Parneet Kaur, and Prithika Pradeep, who lost 229-233 to 14th-seeded Italy in the pre-quarterfinals, dashing hopes of defending their 2023 Berlin title.
With 500 archers from 74 countries competing for world champion titles, the Gwangju event, which includes the compound mixed team event set to debut at the LA 2028 Olympics, will conclude on September 11.
