Para-archer Sheetal Devi has achieved a historic milestone on Thursday by being selected for the able-bodied Indian junior team for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 Stage 3 in Jeddah. The 18-year-old, who was born without arms and shoots using her feet, becomes the first Indian para-athlete ever to be chosen to represent the nation in an international able-bodied competition. This selection follows her bronze medal win in the mixed team compound event at the Paris Paralympics 2024.
She secured her place after competing in the junior selection trials in Sonipat, where she finished an impressive third overall among more than 60 able-bodied archers. She matched the qualification score of the top qualifier, Tejal Salve, with a total of 703 points (352+351). In the final rankings, Sheetal secured third place with 11.75 points, behind Tejal Salve (15.75) and Vaidehi Jadhav (15). She will compete in the Compound Women's team event alongside Tejal Salve and Vaidehi Jadhav.
The selection fulfills a long-standing personal ambition for the young archer from Jammu and Kashmir. Sheetal expressed her joy on social media: "When I started competing, I had a small dream - to one day compete alongside the able-bodied. I didn’t make it at first, but I kept going, learning from every setback. Today, that dream is one step closer." This achievement comes exactly a year after she expressed this heartfelt wish on a popular television show.
Her journey was recently marked by hardship after a rule change by World Archery necessitated a complete rebuild of her shooting stance, forcing her to shoot using only the toe and front of her foot. Coach Gaurav Sharma, who helped her through this adapting phase, confirmed the difficulty: "The new stance demanded immense control and stability. There were days her foot cramped in pain, but she never gave up." Sharma added that he was in "a daze" by the nature of her selection, confirming their future goal is to balance her para and able-bodied campaigns, with the Asian Para Games being the main focus next year.
Sheetal, who is the reigning world compound champion in para archery, joins a Compound Women's team that includes Tejal Salve and Vaidehi Jadhav, with the Asia Cup scheduled to take place from December 10 to 15 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Her achievement draws inspiration from Turkey's reigning Paralympic champion Oznur Cure Girdi, who has also successfully competed in able-bodied international events.