India's journey at the Paris Olympics 2024 kicks off on Thursday with the archery contingent, led by Deepika Kumari and Tarundeep Rai, making their debut in the ranking rounds at Les Invalides.
For the first time since the London Olympics in 2012, India is fielding a full team of six archers, competing in all five medal events: men's team and individual, women's team and individual, and mixed team categories, according to Olympics.com.
The ranking rounds are crucial as they will determine the seedings for the individual and team events. Each archer will shoot 72 arrows, and their performances will set the stage for the subsequent stages of the competition.
In the team events, the top four seeded teams from the ranking rounds will secure direct spots in the quarterfinals. Teams ranked between eighth and 12th will compete for the remaining quarterfinal berths. The mixed team competition will see the top 16 pairs advancing to the next stage, with the combined scores from men's and women's categories used to determine team seedings.
Deepika Kumari, competing in her fourth Olympics and first since becoming a mother, and Tarundeep Rai, also making his fourth Olympic appearance, are joined by Pravin Jadhav, who is returning for his second Olympics after Tokyo 2020. Newcomers Dhiraj Bommadevara, Bhajan Kaur, and Ankita Bhakat will be making their Olympic debut.
Indian archers have yet to secure an Olympic medal. The archery competition at Paris 2024 starts with the individual ranking round on July 25, a day before the Opening Ceremony, with the remaining stages taking place from July 28 to August 4 at Les Invalides.
Today's Schedule (Indian Standard Time, IST):
1:00 PM: Women's Individual Ranking Round (Deepika Kumari, Bhajan Kaur, Ankita Bhakat)
5:45 PM: Men's Individual Ranking Round (Tarundeep Rai, Dhiraj Bommadevara, Pravin Jadhav)
