“We will go to Paris 2024 with a simple mindset of giving our best” - Dheeraj Bommadevara confident of earning a team quota in Paris Olympics 2024
Dheeraj Bommadevara became the only Indian recurve archer to make it to the Paris Olympics 2024 for an individual event. He is confident of securing a team quota at the mega event in Paris, which is his priority.
Notably, Dheeraj Bommadevara, who hails from Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, secured his spot in the Paris Olympics 2024 in the men’s individual event, courtesy of his silver medal at the Asian Continental Qualification Tournament in Bangkok in 2023.
"We are working hard to convert the individual quota into a team quota, so we are constantly working on it, planning for it and as much as possible in the men's tournament," Dheeraj told SAI Media.
“Our first priority is to achieve the team quota. We will go to Paris 2024 with a simple mindset of giving our best. The rest is not in our hands. There is no hope regarding the result. We have to be prepared for everything and perform accordingly,” he added.
“Our priority is just to be better” - Dheeraj Bommadevara
It’s important to note that the Indian men’s recurve side has been in exceptional form. Most recently, the Indian trio of Dheeraj Bommadevara, Tarundeep Rai, and Praveen Jadhav secured a win over Olympic champions South Korea to clinch the World Cup gold medal after 14 years.
Importantly, the World Cup in Antalya, Turkey in June 2024 is the final qualifying event for the Paris Olympics 2024. If the Indian men's team couldn’t make it it the mega event via the qualifying event, it can make it to the quadrennial event via its ranking.
The top two ranked sides in the world get automatic entries for the Summer Games. India is currently ranked at the second spot after South Korea.
Furthermore, Dheeraj bagged a silver medal at the Asian Games in 2023 for the men’s team. Unfortunately, Indian archers are yet to bag a single medal at the Olympics despite performing well in other prestigious events across the world.
"We are trying to achieve better versions of our past. We are not comparing with any other country. Our priority is just to be better and improve from the lessons learned,” he stated.