An Indian archer whose mother sold her gold ornaments to buy him an imported bow helped win his country’s first ever Asian Games gold medal in the sport on Saturday.
Rajat Chauhan, along with team-mates Sandeep Kumar and Abhishek Verma, stunned hosts and world champions South Korea in the men’s compound team final.
The Indians edged out the Koreans 227-225 in the non-Olympic event in front of a vocal crowd at the Gyeyang archery field in Incheon.
Chauhan, 20, who hails from the desert state of Rajasthan, said he hoped the gold medal will inspire the rest of the Indian team.
“We used to look at the Indian medals tally every day and prayed that we would also contribute to it,” he said. “And here we are with the gold medal. I hope India win more golds.”
Chauhan said he had failed his school-leaving exams four times because he was too busy training.
He added that his mother Nirmala had sold gold jewellery to raise about $3,500 to buy him an American-made bow.
“(She did it) without telling me,” Chauhan said. “She must be so happy now.”
Team coach Ranjan Singh attributed the win to a rigorous training schedule that included a 15-day trip to an archery academy in Salt Lake City in the United States.
“We also came to South Korea a month early to get used to the conditions. All the hard work is paying off.”
The archery gold was India’s second at these Games, following shooter Jitu Rai’s victory in the men’s 50m pistol last Saturday. They have 23 medals overall.
India won 14 gold medals at the last Asiad in Guangzhou four years ago.