They are focused and determined to put India on the international map

Archery, originating from the Latin word ‘arcus’ means bow and with the evolution of man led the evolution of this skill. It is a sport requiring utmost control, motivation, physical ability, and determination. It is a sport bringing calmness and attention to the archer. So if there were archery-warriors like Arjuna and Eklavya from the mythological epic Mahabharata, India over years has produced some great sportspersons excelling in archery, making the nation proud. Here is a list of archers from India.

Dola Banerjee The archer started off her journey of representing India at the age of 16 at the Youth Championships back in 1996. She is considered as one of the most experienced archers in the Indian circuit with over 55 international representations and became a World Champion in 2007. Banerjee was the first Indian woman to qualify for the individual archery event at the 2004 Athens Olympics. She also won gold in the Delhi Commonwealth Games and is a recipient of the Arjuna Award.

Deepika Kumar Currently ranked World No. 1, Kumari won her gold in 2010 Commonwealth games and shared another gold with Dola Banerjee and Bombayala Devi. While she has her individual gold in two of the three stages of the World Cup--one in Guatemala and another in Paris. To date, she has won over 30 medals in international events that include seven gold medals. Kumari is also a recipient of the Arjuna Award and a Padma Shri.

Abhishek Verma The archer won a gold medal in the men's compound archery team event along with Rajat Chauhan and Sandeep Kumar, and a silver medal in the men's individual compound event at the 2014 Asian Games in South Korea. He again won a gold medal in the compound men's individual section at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 in Wroclaw, Poland in 2015, and later that year in October he won the silver medal in the compound men's individual section at the Archery World Cup Final in Mexico City.

Jayanta Talukdar The archer has the honor to be called the first-ever Indian gold medallist as he climbed to the top of the podium in the 2006 World Cup in Merida. He won bronze medals in both the 2006 and 2010 Asian Games, followed by being ranked first in the world in 2009. Talukdar also represented India in London in 2012 and is also an awardee of the Arjuna Award.

The archers are Muskan Kirar, Raj Kaur, Ankita Bhakat, Rimil Buriuly, Krishna Das, Trisha Deb, Divya Dhayal, Nisha Rani Dutta, Gagandeep Kaur, Mangal Singh Champia, Rajat Chauhan, Atanu Das, Gora Ho, Sandeep Kumar and Cherukuri Lenin among others.