Although Archery champion Bhajan Kaur was defeated in the Round of 8 elimination match during her debut at the Paris Olympics, her performance is being much applauded. The 18-year-old athlete lost 5-6, ending her campaign at the Games. The Olympic debutante proved her grit, hard work and skills as she qualified for pre-quarterfinals in Women's individual archery at the Paris Olympics 2024.
Bhajan Kaur exhibited early signs of talent and piqued interest in archery. Her journey started young like most sportspersons but her uniqueness lay in her unwavering determination to perfect her skills and aim for something even bigger- the Olympics.
The Prodigal Indian Archer In Olympics 2024
Kaur's love for archery began in school, when her school was looking for an Under-14 girl archer and a teacher asked Kaur to give it a try. That's when she first tried her hands on recurve archery and stunned everyone with her exceptional skills. It has been clear that Bhajan Kaur is an archery prodigy who started young but gained enough momentum to land an individual quota for the Olympics 2024!
From her school trials, the next big stop was her selection at the Tata Archery Academy where she has been learning and practising for more than three years. She also caught the eyes of the renowned Korean-origin Indian archery coach- Lim Chae Woong in Jamshedpur. Lim Chae Woong who was the coach for the Indian Women's Archery team in 2013 has trained and perfected the skills of Bhajan Kaur at an academy in Jamshedpur. Kaur was also noticed by Purnima Mahato while she was in Jamshedpur. Purnima Mahato is the current coach of the Indian Women's Archery Team.
Bhajan Kaur has participated in and won many tournaments and national and international competitions. Her major wins were a bronze medal in the Women's team in Asian Games 2022, two gold medals in the women's team in Asian Grand Prix Circuit 2022 and 2024 respectively and a silver medal in women's individual and team in 2022. She also bagged two bronze in the women's team in World Cup Stage 2023 and 2024.
To gain her seat for the Paris Olympics 2024, Kaur had to work her way up the qualifiers held in Antalya, Turkey. The very famous and skilled archer Deepika Kumari exited in the first round after a defeat but Bhajan Kaur ended up scoring the gold medal in the qualifiers and gained an individual quota for the Summer Games. She defeated the top-seed Mobina Fallah from Iran in an astounding victory of 6-2 to gain the gold. Since then, her performance in the Olympics has been much awaited by people all across the globe.
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