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Asian Games: Kirti Sharma recounts tense final after Indias historic recurve women's team gold

Digital Desk | Nagoya, Oct 3 (IANS) Indias womens recurve archery team produced a historic upset at the Asian Games 2026, defeating South Korea 5-3 in the final to end the Korean powerhouses 44-year dominance in the event. Kirti Sharma, who teamed up with Ankita Bhakat and Kumkum Mohod in the gold-medal winning trio on Friday, said the Indian archers relied on their process and mental composure to negotiate a high-pressure final. We were not thinking about our opponents. We were just focused on our own performance and following the process we went through during training, Kirti Sharma told SAI media in Japan. The Indian team had earlier produced another statement victory in the semifinals, defeating China 5-1 to set up a final against South Korea. Kirti said controlling their emotions and maintaining faith in each other proved crucial as India attempted to break South Koreas long-standing hold over the Asian Games event. All three of us had to control our emotions and believed in each other. We didnt think about the results and just gave our 100 percent, she added. The Hazaribagh-based archer, who hails from Haryana and trains under coach Udham Singh at the SAI training centre in Hazaribagh, said the Indian trio were aware that even a small lapse could change the complexion of the contest. We knew that our opponents can take the game away if we commit even a small mistake. But we stood strong and maintained the same intensity from the first arrow that we fired to the last one, Kirti said. Indias victory came after the countrys compound archers had already made a major impact at the Games, winning the mens, womens and mixed team gold medals at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park. Kirti said that unprecedented success had provided additional motivation to the recurve squad before their own competition began. Our confidence took a big boost after the compound events. The day we won three consecutive gold medals was a lucky day for India. It motivated us a lot. We wanted to emulate their feat, she said. We were raring to go and could hardly wait for our event to start. The victory over South Korea marked a significant moment in the Asian Games history of womens recurve archery, with India overcoming the continental powerhouse in a final that demanded both consistency and composure. For Kirti, Ankita and Kumkum, the gold also added to a memorable day for Indian archery, which had already established itself as one of the countrys strongest medal-winning disciplines at the Games.