Antalya Archery World Cup: Dhiraj Bommadevara stuns Olympic medalist; wins two gold medals

Indian recurve mixed team of Dhiraj Bommadevera and Kumkum Mohod clinched the gold medal at the Archery World Cup Stage-3 in Antalya, Turkiye, on Sunday.

The duo stunned the powerhouse South Korea 5- 1 in the final to win India's first recurve mixed team gold medal at the Archery World Cup stage in 4 years.

They remained unbeaten in the final and showcased brilliant shooting, winning the first two sets (37-36, 37-36) and then tied the third 39-39 to clinch the title.

This is India's first medal of this stage and the second World Cup gold in recurve archery this year, following the women's team gold medal in Shanghai last month.

Dhiraj takes down Paris Olympic medalist

Dhiraj continued his momentum and ended his semi-finals curse to reach his first-ever final at a World Cup stage wth a come-from-behind win over Germany's Mortz Weiser, 6-4.

After three Individual bronze medals on the circuit before, he has finally won his first-ever gold medal with a 6-4 win over Paris Olympic medalist Lee Woo Seok of South Korea in the final.

“This is the 20th edition of the Archery World Cup and also my 20th year in archery. Winning this gold makes me feel like I’m finally heading in the right direction,” said an emotional Dhiraj after claiming the title.

The 24-year-old rising star is now just the third Indian archer to ever win the men's recurve individual World Cup title after Jayanta Talukdara and Atanu Das.

With this victory, he has booked his spot in the World Cup Final for the third time, having missed out last year.