Sheetal Devi targets Asian Para Games gold defence in 2026

World No. 1 Sheetal Devi will target another gold-medal campaign at the 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya, where she is set to defend the women’s individual compound and mixed-team titles she won in Hangzhou in 2023.

The 19-year-old para-archer arrives at the continental event after a run of major achievements that includes her first individual world title in 2025 and a mixed-team world-record qualification score with Rakesh Kumar. She will also aim to turn her previous women’s doubles silver into gold alongside Payal Nag, a result that would complete a hat-trick of titles.

For Sheetal, Aichi-Nagoya represents both a title defence and another significant test against a field that includes familiar domestic and international opposition. Her recent results have established her among India’s leading para-athletes, but the task of retaining the individual and mixed-team crowns will not be straightforward.

A rise from Kishtwar to the world stage

Born on January 10, 2007, in Loidhar village in Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir, Sheetal was born with phocomelia, a rare congenital condition that left her arms underdeveloped. Her early interest in climbing trees helped develop physical strength that later became useful in her archery career.

Her sporting path changed in 2021 after the Indian Army’s Rashtriya Rifles unit spotted her at a youth event in Kishtwar. She was introduced to archery and joined the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board sports complex in Katra, where Abhilasha Chaudhary and Kuldeep Vedwan helped guide her development.

Having not previously handled a bow and arrow, Sheetal developed a specialised shooting technique using her feet, shoulder and jaw. She moved into national competition, including events against able-bodied archers, before quickly making an impression beyond India.

At her first international event, the Nove Mesto Para Archery Cup in Czechia, she won silver. She followed that with an individual silver at her debut World Archery Para Championships in the same year, becoming the first female armless archer to win a medal at that competition.

Her breakthrough at the 2023 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou delivered two gold medals: women’s individual compound and mixed team. She also collected women’s doubles silver, rose to world No. 1 in her category, won gold at the inaugural Khelo India Para Games and received the Arjuna Award.

At the Paris 2024 Paralympics, Sheetal finished second in the individual ranking round with 703 out of 720 but exited in the R16. She still left Paris with mixed-team bronze alongside Rakesh Kumar after India beat Italy 156-155 in the bronze-medal match.

World title and fresh challenges ahead

Sheetal’s momentum continued at the 2025 World Para Archery Championships in Gwangju, where she won her first individual world title. She defeated three-time world champion Öznur Cüre Girdi 146-143 for gold in the women’s individual compound open event, while also taking women’s team silver and mixed-team bronze.

In 2026, she and Rakesh set a mixed-team world record of 1,400 out of 1,440 in qualifying. Sheetal then won the individual title after defeating Kazakhstan’s Aizada Seidan in a shoot-off, adding further weight to her status going into Aichi-Nagoya.

However, the Asian Para Games will present demanding competition. Payal Nag defeated Sheetal at the 2026 World Archery Para Series in Bangkok, while Seidan, archers from China and competitors from Thailand are also identified as potential challengers. Sheetal’s campaign will therefore be defined not only by defending her two Hangzhou titles, but by her pursuit of the women’s doubles gold that narrowly eluded her last time.