Sheetal Devi Nearly Breaks World Record in Para Archery

On August 29, 2024, in Paris, Sheetal Devi, an armless archer representing India, narrowly missed breaking the world record during the women’s individual compound competition.

While competing in the ranking round, Sheetal scored an impressive 703 points. Her performance surpassed both the Para Games record and the existing world record. However, in a dramatic turn, she was overtaken by her competitor, Oznur Cure from Turkey, in the final shot of the qualification round.

The accomplishments of both archers shattered previous records held by Jessica Stretton (694 points in Para Games) and Phoebe Paterson (698 points world record). Both qualified for the Round of 32 stages after a remarkable display of skill and focuses.

Sheetal demonstrated exceptional consistency throughout the ranking round, positioning herself among the top two archers from the beginning. Her dominance was particularly evident in the latter half of the session, where she overtook competitors including Brazil‘s Karla Gogel.

As Sheetal aimed to secure the top position, she ended her final attempt with a score of 9, finishing with 703 points. Oznur Cure then surpassed her with a score of 704 points, achieved by shooting a perfect series in her last attempt.

The competition saw Fatemah Hemmati and Jodie Grinham finishing in third and fourth place with scores of 696 and 693 points, respectively.

In addition to Sheetal’s performance, her fellow Indian para archer Sarita concluded the round in ninth place with a score of 682.

Sheetal, who has been seeded second, has received a bye and will commence her campaign directly in the round of 16 on Saturday. Sarita is set to face Malaysia’s Nur Jannaton Abdul Jalil in the round of 32 on Friday.

Harvinder Singh, also part of the Indian team and previous bronze medallist from the Tokyo Paralympics, placed ninth in the ranking round with a score of 637. The round was led by Frenchman Guillaume Toucoullet, who set a new Paralympic Record with a score of 652.

Harvinder will commence his journey in the competition against Lung-Hui Tseng from Chinese Taipei on September 4.