Chikitha Taniparthi and Sahil Rajesh Jadhav made history as the first compound mixed team to secure LA28 Olympic quota places as India swept all three compound team titles at the 20th Asian Games on Wednesday.
Qualifying as the top seed, the Indian pair secured the LA28 spot after holding their nerve to beat Republic of Korea’s Park Jungyoon and Choi Yonghee 20-19 in a shoot-off for gold.
Nothing separated the teams after a high-quality final finished 157-157.
Taniparthi and Jadhav both delivered 10s in the shoot-off. Jungyoon matched them with a 10 but Yonghee followed with a nine, handing India the title at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square in Aichi Prefecture.
The Indian pair had earlier edged Thailand 156-155 in the semifinals.
“We have been practicing communication a lot,” Jadhav said. “All of the team have been working on this very hard, especially during team practice sessions.
“There have been many low points but when something like this happens, becoming a champion, it feels as though it was meant to happen.”
The victory earned India the two quota places available here for the compound mixed team event, which will make its Olympic debut at LA28.
Because quotas are earned by a country, not individual athletes, National Olympic Committees have final authority to select which athletes will represent their delegation at LA28.
