Daijiworld Media Network – Gwangju

Gwangju, Sep 10: India’s recurve archers faced heartbreak on Wednesday as the women’s team lost 3-5 to hosts South Korea in the bronze medal playoff, while the mixed pair and men’s individual campaigns also ended in disappointment.

Desperate to end a decade-long medal drought, Deepika Kumari, Gatha Khadake, and Ankita Bhakat fought valiantly, leveling the contest at 3-3, but the Korean pair of Olympic champions An San and Lim Si-hyeon clinched the decider 56-54.

In the mixed team event, Deepika and Neeraj Chauhan fell 4-5 to Japan after a shoot-off, and men’s individual hopes ended earlier, with Rahul, Dhiraj Bommadevara, and Neeraj exiting the competition.

Deepika, returning to Worlds after motherhood, will now focus on the women’s individual event alongside 15-year-old Gatha, aiming to end India’s recurve medal drought that stretches back to 2019. Meanwhile, compound archers have already delivered, securing men’s team gold and mixed team silver.