Bommadevara wins; Indian archery gets its first male final champion

Dhiraj Bommadevara has become the first Indian male recurve archer to win the individual Archery World Cup Final. He defeated Japan’s Junya Nakanishi in a shoot-off in Saltillo, Mexico, on September 13, according to World Archery and the event’s official results system.

The final was tied 5-5 after Bommadevara fought back from 3-1 and 5-3 down. His deciding arrow landed as a 10-X; Nakanishi’s went wide right. Bommadevara had earlier beaten Türkiye’s Berkim Tumer and France’s Jean-Charles Valladont, both 7-1.

World Archery records him as India’s second recurve World Cup Final champion overall, after Dola Banerjee won the women’s title in 2007. Bommadevara dedicated the victory to the Archery Association of India and the Government of India, calling it a dream come true. The scoreboard, unlike most official speeches, required no translation.