India ab world level pe perform kar raha hai: Archer Abhishek Verma

Archer Abhishek Verma continues to bring laurels for the country. Recently, as part of the Indian Men’s compound team — with Rajat Chauhan and Aman Saini — he fought to the finish to win over France and clinch the gold medal in successive world cup stages. The team stunned one and all at Archery World Cup in Gwangju, South Korea. And Verma, along with Avneet Kaur, even claimed bronze in the mixed team event.

“Is saal ka yeh humara second gold medal tha. Due to this performance, humari compound team world champion bani. In dono parts mein main lead kar raha tha aur humare team ka medal aaya. Now our team rank is second in the world! This is a good sign, and shows that we are growing and on a good path... Asian Games and World Championship abhi kuchch hi mahino mein hone wali hai,” says the 32-year-old Arjuna awardee.

But this medal, Verma feels, was all the more special because it was won in South Korea; which was the host country. “We got Archery gold medal at the world cup in Korea. Woh koi bhi team chodti nahin hai! Unki country mein jaake unko beat karke humne jeeta gold... yeh bhi ek challenging cheez thi. Before Korea, we won over teams from Italy, US, and France. Hum achchi strategy ke saath aage bade the,” adds he, who has previously won gold and silver medals at Asian Games 2014, and a team silver medal in Asian Games 2018.

Post the win, the trio struck the iconic pose from Pushpa, which went viral on social media and compelled people to take notice of the amazing display of archery skills that the Indian team exhibited at this tournament. “Woh (Pushpa pose) trending cheez thi. Kahin nah kahin josh rehta hai [medal jeetne ke baad],” he says, and sharing what happened BTS, he adds: “Wahan par, at the moment of going towards the podium, our teammates were cheering for us. For us, it was kind of a victory pose. Davedari karni thi ki we are the best!”

“As an archery player, har ek ko malum hai ki humari Indian sabhyata (civilisation) mein teer kaman kya hai, kyunki woh humare culture mein hai. Ab India world level pe perform kar raha hai. Ab archery jaise sports bhi utna hi popular ho jayenge jitna cricket hai aaj ki date mein.... Hum issi tarah medals leke aate rahenge toh kids will pursue it as a passion or a hobby. Sab easy ho jaayega agar hum platform banayenge,” opines the Delhi-born athlete.

Since his return to the Capital, the Hansraj College graduate has been busy attending felicitation ceremonies including one at the Income Tax department office, where he works, and confesses, “Jyada time hume bhi nahi mil pata ki Delhi mein hum rahein. As a sports person, kahi bhi camps attend karne hote hain. Humein bhi nahin pata chalta ki kab Delhi mein hain aur kab US mein. Almost paanch passports bhar gaye hain (laughs).”

But whenever back to his home in the city, he ensures to reserve his precious time for his family, alongside indulging in his love for Delhi’s chaat, every once in a while. “I am a father to a four-year-old kid. So immediate ghar pahuchte hi aur family ko time dete hain. Chahe woh movie dekhni ho ya dilli ki chaat khane chalna ho. Because almost two three days after any tournament, we have to join back (for training),” adds the sportsperson.

“Maine 20 years diye hain archery ko. Mere parents ko shuru se maloom [tha ki I’m a born] sports person,” says Verma, adding: “In 2002, by chance main archery mein aa gaya. Mujhe dusri game mein jaana tha, but usmein vacancy full ho gayi thi. From that day (I started practising), and just the next year became a champion in the junior as well as in the senior (category). That’s how one lands into the Indian team. It kind of serves as a reality check; assurance mil jata ki yehi aapka sahi platform hai. Back to back performances bhi up rahi hain.”

Author Tweets @Nainaarora8

Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.