Indian recurve archer Dhiraj Bommadevara created history by becoming the first Indian male archer to win gold at the Archery World Cup 2026 Final in Saltillo, Mexico. The 25-year-old Army archer defeated Japan’s Nakanishi Junya 6-5 in a dramatic shoot-off after the five-set final ended 5-5. This historic triumph ended India’s 16-year wait for a men’s podium finish at the season-ending event.

Indian recurve archer Dhiraj Bommadevara created history in Saltillo, Mexico, by becoming the first Indian male archer to win a gold medal at the Archery World Cup Final. The 25-year-old Army archer, currently ranked world No. 10, defeated Japan’s Nakanishi Junya 6-5 in a nail-biting final decided by a shoot-off.

The victory marks India’s first World Cup Final gold medal in 19 years, following Dola Banerjee’s women’s recurve title win in Dubai back in 2007. It also ended a 16-year drought for Indian male recurve archers at the event since Jayanta Talukdar’s bronze medal performance in Edinburgh in 2010.

Dhiraj Bommadevara wins Gold in Tense Final:

The final match against world No. 20 Nakanishi went down to the wire as neither archer gave ground across five sets. The set scores stood at 28-28, 28-29, 29-28, 28-30, and 28-27, pushing the match into a 5-5 deadlock. In the decisive shoot-off, Dhiraj delivered a perfect 10, while Nakanishi scored a 9, sealing the historic gold for India.

Before reaching the gold medal match, Dhiraj delivered dominant performances in the knockout rounds. He opened his campaign with a 7-1 quarterfinal victory over Olympic medallist Berkim Tümer of Turkiye, followed by another 7-1 win against France’s two-time Olympic silver medallist Jean-Charles Valladont in the semifinals.

Dhiraj defeated Japan’s Nakanishi Junya 6-5 by shooting a 10 in a high-pressure shoot-off after tying 5-5 in the set points. Dola Banerjee was the last Indian archer to win gold at the Archery World Cup Final, winning the women’s recurve title in 2007.