"Whenever it was our turn, the wind speed was more" - Ankita Bhakat opens up on the weather conditions after losing bronze at Paris Olympics 2024
Indian archer Ankita Bhakat, who missed out on a bronze medal after losing to the USA along with her mixed archery team partner Dhiraj Bommadevara on Friday, blamed the varying wind conditions for her disappointing performance in the match.
Speaking to the media after the 6-2 loss against USA in the bronze medal match at the Paris Olympics 2024, Ankita Bhakat said:
“Yes, whenever it was our turn, the wind speed was more, while it was less during their [USA's] turn. So it was a bit difficult.”
In the conversation provided by the broadcaster, Ankita Bhakat's archery partner Dhiraj Bommadevara echoed similar sentiments, as he said that the wind speeds were much more favorable when the American duo of Casey Kaufhold and Brady Ellison took aim.
"We were waiting for that [wind speed] to be same for everyone, but the wind was dying down [during USA's turn]. So, it was very unlucky,” Dhiraj said.
“We will not stop” - Dhiraj on the importance of hard work after losing the bronze medal game
Despite a dismal performance from Ankita Bhakat in the game against the USA, Dhiraj Bommadevara said that the pair will continue to take the positives from the match and continue their hard work.
“We did all we could, we are looking to improve. We will not stop,” Dhiraj said after the game.
"Yes, [accepting the loss] is difficult. But it teaches us many lessons to continue our hard work. It gives us a boost up. We take everything positively. We will do better in the future,” he added.
India had a chance to win its first-ever Olympic medal in archery on Friday but made the worst possible start after losing the first two sets with the scorelines of 38-37 and 37-35, respectively. However, the mixed archery team of Dhiraj and Ankita did not give up on victory, winning the third set 38-34 to keep their medal hopes alive.
In the fourth set, though, the Indian team fell short by some margin, losing it and the game by 35-37 to return empty-handed from the game.