Asian Games 2023: Archer Jyothi Vennam Scripts History, Wins Gold

On October 7, Jyothi Surekha Vennam beat Korea's Chaewon So, to win the gold medal in the women’s compound individual event in archery during the ongoing Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

This is Vennam's third consecutive gold medal. She defeated Chaewon with a score of 149-145 in the final match. Prior to this, she had already clinched two gold medals in the women's and mixed-team events.

Historic Gold Medal

The match saw a neck-to-neck performance by Vennam and her South Korean counterpart. The Indian archer started with a score of nine in her first attempt which was initially counted as an eight. Despite losing the first round to her Korean opponent, Vennam delivered perfect tens in all her subsequent attempts.

Vennam took the lead in the second end when Chaewon scored an eight. She continued to maintain her advantage and ultimately secured victory with a final score of 149-145. With this triumph in the final, India's medal count at the Asian Games 2023 increased to 97.

Vennam's Journey To Final

In the semi-finals, Aditi Swami and Jyoti Vennam both played the semifinals in the women’s compound individual event. While Surekha progressed to the finals, Swami would battle for bronze in the playoff tie.

Swami dropped just one point from the 15 arrows and beat Philippines Amaya Amparo Cojuangco in her quarterfinals with a score of 149-146.

Surekha, on the other hand, beat Kazakhstan’s Adel Zhexenbinova with a score of 147-144.

The Indian duo Surekha and Swami met at the second semi-final meeting, and the latter had beaten the former at the World Championship in Berlin with a score of 149-145 earlier in August.

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27-year-old Jyothi Surekha, who hails from Hyderabad, entered the Limca Book of Records at the age of 4 for crossing the Krishna River three times, covering a distance of 5 km in three hours, 20 minutes, and six seconds. She began archery in 2007 and made her international debut in 2011.

Aditi Swami became the youngest world archery champion at the age of 17 in the World Cup era by winning India’s first individual title at the 2023 Hyundai World Archery Championship with compound women’s gold in Berlin. The teenage sensation played against her senior teammate and idol, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, to break this record.