India Beat South Korea 5-3 to Win First-Ever Asian Games Women’s Recurve Team Gold

India’s women’s recurve archery team made history at the Asian Games on Friday, defeating South Korea 5-3 in the final to win the country’s first-ever gold medal in the event.

The trio of Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and Kumkum Mohod toppled the 10-time Olympic champions at Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park in Nagoya, ending decades of South Korean dominance in the women’s team final — a final the Koreans had not lost since the event was introduced in 1982, according to IANS.

Contested in windy conditions, the opening two sets were shared as both teams posted 54 and 56. South Korea faltered in the third set with three successive 8s for 52, and India seized the opening with 55 to take the lead. The fourth set went down to the wire: Korea posted 54, and Kirti’s opening arrow, initially registered as an 8, was upgraded to a 9 after a check — levelling India’s total at 54 and sealing the gold, according to PTI.

Kumkum, 17, repeatedly delivered 10s at decisive moments, while Ankita’s experience steadied the side under pressure. The trio had earlier stormed into India’s first-ever Asian Games final with a 5-1 semifinal win over China.

The gold is India’s 11th at the Aichi-Nagoya Games, lifting its medal tally to 67, according to ANI.

Sources:

• PTI report via Reporter World News: https://reporterworldnews.com/news/sports/2026/10/02/india-beat-south-korea-maiden-asian-games-gold-women-recurve-archery
• IANS report via Hi India: https://hiindia.com/asian-games-india-stun-10-time-champions-korea-to-win-first-ever-womens-recurve-archery-team-gold/
• Livemint Asian Games live blog: https://www.livemint.com/sports/news/asian-games-2026-live-updates-india-schedule-today-medal-tally-results-archery-boxing-wrestling-archery-hockey-2-october-11790875125942.html