Compound archers inducted into TOPS core group after Olympic inclusion
NEW DELHI: Seven of India's top compound archers, including Asian Games gold medallists
Abhishek Verma
and Parneet Kaur, have been inducted into the
Sports Ministry
's Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) core group following the inclusion of
compound archery
in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The decision was taken during the 155th meeting of the
Mission Olympic Cell
(MOC), which included key sports leaders such as Pullela Gopichand and Viren Rasquinha.
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In a landmark move, this is the first new bow category added to the Olympics since archery returned to the Games in 1972. Alongside Verma and Parneet, Ojas Pravin Deotale, Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Aditi Gopichand Swami, Priyansh, and Prathamesh Samadhan Jawkar were also selected based on recent international success and average arrow scores surpassing the required thresholds (9.77+ for men, 9.67+ for women).
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The selection followed India's dominant performance at the recent
Archery World Cup
in Florida. Jyothi Vennam clinched three gold medals — in the women's team (with Aditi and Parneet), mixed team (with Verma), and individual event — while the men's team of Verma, Priyansh, and Prathamesh also secured team gold, with Priyansh earning individual silver.
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Do you think the inclusion of compound archery in the 2028 Olympics will boost the sport's popularity in India?
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The MOC sanctioned 56 proposals amounting to Rs 4.37 crore across TOPS, TEAMS, and TAGG categories. Other approvals included funding for long jumper Shaili Singh's participation in the UAE Grand Prix and UAE Women's Gala. Singh recently broke her coach Anju Bobby George's 23-year-old national record with a 6.64m jump at the Federation Cup.
Also sanctioned were training requests for boxer Nikhat Zareen in Tashkent, table tennis players Manika Batra and Sreeja Akula for the ITTF Worlds in Qatar, and rising 15-year-old tennis star Maaya Rajeswaran for a year-long training stint at the
Rafa Nadal Academy
in Spain.
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