India topples favourites Korea in potential Asian Games matchup at Antalya 2026

Oh Yejin and Kim Je Deok were left ruing the chance to win their first World Cup mixed team gold together as India stunned Korea 5-1 with a ruthless performance at Antalya 2026 - stage three of the Hyundai Archery World Cup.

Whenever a Korean recurve team steps into a competition's finals venue, it usually feels like a formality that gold will be wrapped around their necks, whoever is shooting, such is their renowned depth - although the Chinese recurve women side are giving them a run for their money this year, having won their second gold of the season earlier.

Dhiraj Bommadevara and Kumkum Anil Mohod had other ideas, however, and relentless ones at that, as they put on a near-clinical display against the nation that has won both Olympic mixed team gold medals since the event joined the Games programme at Tokyo 2020.

Even when Bommadevara shot his second of four 10s at the end of the second end to make it 4-0 - as Yejin and Je Deok landed all of their arrows in the nine-ring - there was still an inkling that Korea could gather themselves enough to drag India into an unwanted shoot-off.

They did improve to a degree with a fantastic 39-point end - which included two Xs from Olympic men's team gold medallist Je Deok - but it was mirrored brilliantly by the Indian duo, leaving the score at 5-1 and sparking jubilant celebrations from their teammates and coaches in the stands.

“Actually, this time it feels more special because it's the first time winning mixed team gold for me,” said Bommadevara when comparing the feeling from today's gold to the first World Cup title he won in the recurve men team event at Shanghai 2024. “Usually it's not quite good for us, but the good thing is we didn't give up. The most important thing is we didn't think about who we were playing against; we were just focusing on ourselves.”

“We are just trying to enjoy our game and believe in ourselves because we deserve it, given how much hard work we have done back in India.”

“We know how much effort each other is putting into everything to win gold for the country, so that's what matters most for me and also for our team. We are just thinking about what's best for India.”

Whilst the wind was a tad calmer than it was yesterday for the compound archers at the world-class facility of the Gloria Sports Arena, Bommadevara and Mohod's minds would have been racing with nerves before stepping onto the stage.

Although the 2025 Asian champion has significantly more experience competing on archery's premier international circuit than 17-year-old Mohod, a mixed team gold medal match is still a heightened-pressure situation that he had yet to live, having previously only competed for bronze in the discipline at Shanghai and Antalya in 2024 - both of which he won alongside Ankita Bhakat and Bhajan Kaur.

Yet the entire Indian contingent that came to cheer huddled with the duo before the morning session began, offering encouragement, and that camaraderie has increased in recent times. It helped Bommadevara and Mohod on Sunday.

“For a long time, we were just a recurve team and the compound team was a little separate because of the timings and everything. But now it's really fun.”

“We guys are hanging out in hotels, we are doing some recreational games and we are having a lot of regular team meetings in which we're sharing our experiences with each other.”

“It's not about recurve and compound, right?” added Bommadevara. “It's about archery. It's so fun to be with the whole team together, regardless of whether it's recurve or compound, talking just about archery and how we can improve.”

Today, India's togetherness worked, and for them it will hopefully do so at the 20th Asian Games too, where there is a strong possibility of facing Korea for medals in several events at Aichi-Nagoya.

Competition in Antalya concludes with the recurve individual finals this afternoon.

Podiums: Antalya 2026

Full results on the event page.

Recurve men’s team

1. Korea (Lee Woo Seok, Kim Woojin, Kim Je Deok)
2. USA (Nicholas D’Amour, Trenton Cowles, Christian Stoddard)
3. Chinese Taipei (Cheng Hsiang-Hui, Tang Chih-Chun, Lin Zih-Siang)

Recurve women’s team

1. China (Huang Yuwei, Li Jiaman, Zhu Jingyi)
2. Mexico (Alejandra Valencia Trujillo, Angela Ruiz Rosales, Ana Paula Vazquez Flores)
3. Korea (Oh Yejin, Lee Yunji, Kang Chaeyoung)

Recurve mixed team

1. India (Dhiraj Bommadevara, Kumkum Anil Mohod)
2. Korea (Kim Je Deok, Oh Yejin)
3. Italy (Matteo Borsani, Roberta Di Francesco)

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