New Delhi, June 24 (IANS) India men’s and women’s teams have secured Paris Olympics quotas in archery based on the updated world rankings on Monday.
India finished on top in both men’s and women’s rankings among non-qualified countries to earn the respective berth for next month’s quadrennial showpiece.
With the latest team quotas, India will compete in all five medal categories in archery – men’s and women’s team events, individual and mixed categories.
In the men’s category, India and China secured quotas while in the women’s category, Indonesia joined India as the second country to secure team quota.
The team events will consist of 12 sides in each section, while five teams will participate in the mixed competitions.
For the first time, team quotas are being allocated to the top two nations following the three-leg Olympic qualifiers.
The first Olympic Qualifier took place at the World Archery Championships in Berlin last year. South Korea, Turkey, and Japan qualified in the men’s category, while Germany and Mexico secured their spots in the women’s division.
The second leg was a continental qualifier. In the Asian leg, South Korea and Kazakhstan earned the men’s and women’s team quotas respectively, while Colombia and the United States qualified from Pan-America. Italy (men) and the Netherlands (women) secured quotas from the European leg.
The final Olympic Qualifier was recently held in Antalya. Mexico, Chinese Taipei, and Great Britain secured quotas in the men’s section, and China, Malaysia, Great Britain, and Chinese Taipei made the cut in the women’s section.
Tarundeep Rai, a 40-year-old Army veteran, who debuted at Athens 2004, will be making his fourth appearance at the Games. Also, former world no. 1 Deepika Kumari will compete in her fourth consecutive Olympics, having first participated in London 2012.
Dhiraj Bommadevara, Ankita Bhakat, and Bhajan Kaur will make their Olympic debuts, while Pravin Jadhav will participate in his second successive Games after Tokyo.
India squad:
Men: Tarundeep Rai, Dhiraj Bommadevara, and Pravin Jadhav.
Women: Deepika Kumari, Bhajan Kaur, and Ankita Bhakat.
-IANS
ab/bc
