The Indian women’s archery team, comprising Bhajan Kaur, Deepika Kumari and Ankita Bhakat, directly qualified for the quarter-finals of the event at the Paris Olympics by securing a fourth-place finish with 1983 points.
In the women’s archery ranking round, South Korea led with 2046 points, followed by China (1996) and Mexico (1986). Ankita Bhakat achieved 11th place with a season-best 666 points. South Korea’s Lim Sihyeon, with a world record 694 points, and Nam Suhyeon, with a personal best of 688 points, were the top two archers.
Each archer was required to shoot 72 arrows in two halves of 36 each. The top four seeds earned direct qualification to the quarter-finals. After the first set, Indian archers had the following standings: Ankita Bhakat with 54 points in 22nd place, Deepika Kumari with 51 points in 51st place, and Bhajan Kaur with 51 points in 52nd place. Sihyeon Lim from South Korea led with 59 points.
As the rounds progressed, Ankita and Bhajan improved their standings, reaching 7th and 41st place, respectively. Deepika moved to 36th place in the second set but fell to 39th in the third set.
By the end of the first half, India was in 6th place overall. Ankita was 12th with 335 points, Deepika 37th with 327 points, and Bhajan 23rd with 330 points. The team needed a strong second half to secure a direct quarter-final spot. South Korea led the team rankings, with Sihyeon Lim leading individually.
In the second half, India improved their position. Ankita moved to 15th place with 389 points, while Deepika and Bhajan climbed to 25th and 28th places, respectively. India rose to fourth seed.
By the end of the eighth set, India maintained fourth place, with Ankita in 11th, Deepika in 24th, and Bhajan in 30th. In the ninth set, India dropped to fifth place, but Ankita stayed 11th, Deepika fell to 30th, and Bhajan moved up to 25th.
By the tenth set, India regained fourth place. Ankita dropped to 12th, Bhajan rose to 21st, and Deepika reached 28th. In the 11th set, Ankita scored 58 points, while Bhajan and Deepika each scored 56.
In the final set, Deepika excelled with four consecutive 10-point shots, scoring 57 points and finishing 23rd with an aggregate of 658. Bhajan scored 53 points in the final set, securing 22nd place with a total of 659. Ankita ended in 11th place with an aggregate of 666 points, scoring 54 points in the final set.
