As excitement builds for the FISU World University Games 2025, set to take place from July 16–27 across Germany’s Rhine-Ruhr region, India’s young archers are quietly preparing for one of the biggest university-level sporting events in the world.
With competitions scheduled between July 22–26, the Indian contingent heads to Germany carrying both ambition and a proud history of past podium finishes.
Meet India’s Archery Squad for Rhine-Ruhr 2025
The Indian team features a balanced mix of promising women and men archers, many of whom have already impressed at national and university competitions:
Women’s Team (Recurve & Compound):
•Madhura Dhamangaonkar
•Aditi Jaiswal
•Basanti Mahato
•Bhajan Kaur
•Avneet Kaur
•Parneet Kaur
Men’s Team (Recurve & Compound):
•Mrinal Chauhan
•Vishnu Choudhary
•Kushal Dalal
•Aryan Rana
•Sahil Rajesh Jadhav
•Hritik Sharma
These archers will compete in individual, team, and mixed events across both recurve (Olympic-style) and compound disciplines.
Looking Back: A Record of Success
Indian archers have built a strong reputation at the FISU World University Games, especially at the last edition (2021 Games held in 2023 in Chengdu, China):
•🥇 Men’s and Women’s Compound Individual Gold – India achieved a rare sweep
•🥇 Mixed Team Compound Gold – Aman Saini and Pragati edged past South Korea 157–156
•🥈 Women’s Compound Team Silver – Lost a close final to South Korea 224–229
•🥉 Men’s Compound Team Bronze – Defeated South Korea in the playoff
•🥉 Men’s Compound Individual Bronze – Aman Saini added another medal
•🥉 Women’s Recurve Team Bronze – Overcame France to finish on the podium
These results made archery one of India’s most successful sports at the Games, proving that Indian student-athletes can compete with the world’s best.
The Challenge Ahead
This year, the competition is expected to be just as fierce. Archery federations from countries like Canada and Malaysia have already announced strong teams, and powerhouse nations including South Korea, China, and Italy traditionally field highly experienced squads drawn from deep university talent pools.
For India’s young archers, Rhine-Ruhr 2025 is about more than medals it’s about testing their skills against the highest standard of international university competition.
The Next Generation Steps Up
The Indian squad includes several fresh names making their World University Games debut alongside a few experienced competitors from national championships and Khelo India University Games. Notably, many of the archers come from regions where grassroots archery has grown rapidly, backed by better facilities and professional coaching.
While recurve archery is Olympic-style and highly competitive, compound archery though not part of the Olympic program has been an area where India has particularly excelled at university and Asian levels.
Medals, Momentum, and Motivation
The medal rush in Chengdu 2023 has raised expectations for this edition. Beyond the immediate results, the Games provide India’s young archers with:
✅ International exposure: Competing against some of the best student-athletes worldwide
✅ Experience under pressure: Learning to adapt quickly to challenging match formats and conditions
✅ Pathway to higher levels: Many past World University Games medallists have advanced to represent India at Asian Games, World Cups, and even the Olympics
FISU Did You Know?
•At Chengdu 2023, India’s archery team brought home a remarkable haul, with both compound and recurve medals.
•Other countries, like Malaysia, have announced a target of seven medals across sports highlighting how competitive the Games have become.
•Indian archers’ mixed team and individual medals showed the importance of balance across both genders and event types.
Aiming for Another Memorable Campaign
The Indian archery contingent heads to Rhine-Ruhr with cautious optimism. Their success won’t just be measured in medals, but in how well they handle world-class opponents, adapt their strategies, and gain experience that can shape their future international careers.
For these young athletes, stepping onto the line in Germany means representing not only their universities and federations but also the hopes of Indian archery fans eager to see the next generation take aim and hit the mark.
✨ #FISUGames #TeamIndia #Archery #RhineRuhr2025 #IndianArchery 🏹🇮🇳
