Asian Para Games 2026: Sheetal Devi and Payal Nag win silver in compound doubles archery

India’s Sheetal Devi and Payal Nag won the silver medal in the women’s compound doubles event at the Asian Para Games on Wednesday. The Indian pair lost 141-150 to China’s Xu Xueqing and Zhao Jing in the final.The 19-year-old Indians found it difficult to match their opponents after the opening end and spent the rest of the match trying to catch up.Sheetal shoots four 10s, Payal strugglesParis Paralympics bronze medallist Sheetal was more consistent, hitting four 10s during the final. However, Asian Para Games debutant Payal could not match her accuracy. She scored mostly 9s and 8s before hitting a 7 with her final arrow.Sheetal was born without arms, while Payal is a quadruple amputee. Despite the defeat, the pair finished with a silver medal.Sheetal wins second successive silverThis was Sheetal’s second consecutive silver medal in the women’s compound doubles event at the Asian Para Games. She had finished second in the previous edition while partnering Sarita Devi.Sheetal, who is from Loidhar village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, was born with phocomelia, a rare condition that left her arms severely underdeveloped.She is also in contention for a gold medal in the individual event.Payal’s journey to the topPayal, who is from Odisha, lost all four limbs after coming into contact with an 11,000-volt high-tension power line at the age of eight.She came into the spotlight in April this year when she beat Sheetal on her way to winning gold at the World Archery Para Series in Bangkok.Indian men miss bronze by one pointIndia’s Toman Kumar and Shyam Sunder Swami narrowly missed out on a medal in the men’s compound doubles event. They lost 153-154 to China’s Ai Xinliang and Zhang Yicheng in the bronze-medal match.Kumar has a permanent physical impairment following the amputation of his left leg. Swami has a locomotor impairment that affects the movement of his lower limbs.Stay updated with the latest Asian Games 2026 news, check the Asian Games medal tally and complete Asian Games schedule.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.