Archer Aditi Swami named World Archery breakthrough performer of the year

Archer Aditi Swami has been awarded the Breakthrough Archer of the Year 2023 by World Archery after the completion of the World Archery Indoor Series final in Las Vegas, USA on Sunday.

The 17-year-old had a tremendous year in 2023, becoming India's first-ever world champion in the sport of archery. She also contributed to the Indian contingent's Asian Games heroics, winning gold with the women's team and an individual bronze.

Aditi came into the limelight at the Medellin World Cup in Colombia, where she broke the junior world record and topped the ranking round among the world's best archers. She continued this momentum, securing the gold medal at the World U19 Archery Championships in Limerick, Ireland, before winning the senior world championship title in Berlin, Germany.

She was also a member of the Indian compound women's team that won four gold medals last year, including a gold at the World Championships, partnering with Parneet Kaur and Jyothi Surekha Vennam.

Alongside her, Indian national compound team coach Sergio Pagni receives the prestigious award for the Best Coach of the Year 2023, following the tremendous success of the Indian compound team under his guidance. Pagni, a two-time World Cup Final winner from Italy, was hired as the chief compound archery coach of India in December 2022 and has significantly transformed the strength of the Indian compound team.

India has experienced immense growth in just one year of his coaching, securing three world championships gold in the same year, a feat unprecedented in the sport's entire history. Additionally, there was a complete clean sweep at the Asian Games last year.