of India Dheeraj Bomadeura And Kumkum Mohod won the recurve mixed team gold medal at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 in Antalya on Sunday, defeating reigning Olympic champions South Korea in the final.The Indian pair defeated Oh Ye Jin and Kim Ji Deok 5-1 (37-36, 37-36, 39-39) to clinch the title. Facing one of the strongest teams in international archery, Dheeraj and Kumkum were in control throughout the match and made the most of the crucial moments.The opening two sets were tightly contested, but the Indian pair took both by a point apiece to take a 4-0 lead. South Korea fought back in the third set and tied India with a score of 39-39 to earn a point. However, this was not enough to prevent India from sealing the gold medal.Dheeraj played a key role in the final stages of the competition. The 24-year-old Olympian shot a perfect 10 with his last two arrows, helping India close out the match and secure victory.The gold medal is a significant achievement for both the archers. It was the first World Cup gold medal for Dheeraj and 17-year-old Kumkum in the recurve mixed team event.The victory marked India’s second victory over South Korea in as many months and highlighted the growing confidence within the recrudescent set-up in the run-up to the Asian Games in three months’ time.At the Shanghai World Cup last month, the women’s trio of Deepika Kumari, Kumkum and Ankita Bhakta stunned the record 10-time Olympic champions in the semifinals en route to gold. Dheeraj’s campaign in Antalya is not over yet. India’s top-ranked archer has also reached the individual semi-finals and is in contention for another medal.Kumkum had won earlier this season. At the Archery World Cup Stage 2 in Shanghai last month, she was part of the Indian women’s recurve team that won the gold medal.India’s previous recurve mixed team gold medal at the World Cup stage came in 2022, also in Antalya. On this occasion, Ridhipur and Trindeep Roy won the title by defeating Britain’s Bryony Pittman and Alex Wise in a shoot-off.
