Form Guide: How have the Indian archers fared in tournaments before the Tokyo Olympics

When Indian archers take the field at the Tokyo Olympics, they will be expected to produce a better performance than they have in the previous editions. Indian archery has been on the rise for the past decade. They have been one of the top teams in all global competitions. While their record has been good at World Cups, the Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games, they have failed to deliver at the Olympics.

However, this is expected to change at the Tokyo Olympics 2020. At the moment, most Indian archers participating in the summer games are ranked in the top 10 - in both individual and team events. They've also enjoyed a successful 2021 with a good run-in to the Tokyo Olympics. The likes of Atanu Das and Deepika Kumari were among the medal winners at the World Cups in Guatemala and Paris. India managed to win four medals each, at Stage 1 in Guatemala and Stage 3 in Paris.

Unfortunately, the Indian team had to miss out on the Stage 2 World Cup in Switzerland as they were denied short-term visas.

In this article, we take a look at how Indian archers have fared in tournaments before the Tokyo Olympics.

Indian archers winning medals before Tokyo Olympics

Archery World Cup Stage 3, Paris - The Indian contingent won a total of four medals at the Stage 3 World Cup. Three out of the four medals were bagged by the recurve archers.

At the center of India's medals was ace archer Deepika Kumari. She won the gold medal in the women's individual event, beating Russia's Elena Osipova 6-0 in the final. Deepika Kumari combined with Atanu Das to deliver yet another gold medal in the competition in the mixed team event. The final recurve gold medal was won by the women's team comprising of Deepika Kumari, Ankita Bhakat and Komalika Bari.

Unfortunately, the women's team did not make it to the Olympics, but the other two wins were a huge boost to India before the Olympics. The men's recurve team comprising of Atanu Das, Pravin Jadhav and Tarundeep Rai managed a quarter-final finish before losing to the German team.

Congratulations to Deepika Kumari, ,@archer_abhishek, Ankita Bhakat, Atanu Das & Komalika Bari for their outstanding performances and bringing laurels for the country at the #ArcheryWorldCup.Onwards and upwards for more glory in the time to come. pic.twitter.com/2Lvz8E3LxS

— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) July 1, 2021

Archery World Cup Stage 1, Guatemala - This World Cup was yet another successful outing for India's archers. India managed to secure four medals in the tournament. All four were won by recurve archers. Atanu Das and Deepika Kumari claimed medals in the men's individual and women's individual events.

India's mixed team pair of Atanu Das and Ankita Bhakar secured a bronze medal by defeating the US team 6-2 in the third place match. The women's team of Kumari, Bhakat and Komalika Bari won a gold medal at the Stage 1 World Cup as well. The men's team managed a quarter-final performance at the event, before bowing out to Spain in a close contest.

This string of positive results should offer encouragement to India's archers as they head to the Tokyo Olympics. With the archers having ample experience, the Indian fans back home will be rooting for their team to finally secure an Olympic medal in the sport.