World No. 1 para archer Sheetal Devi has won her first individual gold medal at the Hyundai World Archery Para Series, defeating Kazakhstan’s Aizada Seidan in a dramatic shoot-off in Ahmedabad on September 9. The 19-year-old Indian tied the final at 144-144 before producing a perfect 10 in the deciding shoot-off, while Seidan scored 9.
The victory is another landmark in a career that began unusually late: Sheetal had never even seen a bow and arrow until she was around 15. Born with phocomelia, a rare congenital condition that left her without arms, she had to develop an entirely new way of shooting. She is now a world champion and World No. 1, with the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Para Games next on her calendar.
Born Without Both Arms
Sheetal was born on January 10, 2007, in Loidhar village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district with phocomelia, a rare congenital condition affecting limb development. Growing up in a farming family, she learnt to use her feet and toes for everyday activities such as eating, writing and climbing trees. But sport, particularly archery, was nowhere on her horizon during her childhood.
Her introduction to sport came only during her teenage years. Accounts of her journey describe her being assessed for sporting potential before she was introduced to archery at around 15. A prosthetic solution was explored but did not work for her. Coaches instead recognised her strong core and lower-body strength and began looking at how those abilities could be adapted to archery.
Archery Came Late
For most elite athletes, beginning a sport at 15 would be considered a significant disadvantage. Sheetal, however, had to learn not only the sport but also a completely unconventional shooting technique.
Her coaches initially used a rubber band and placed targets just five metres away. As her confidence and technique developed, she progressed to a standard bow and began shooting at 50 metres, the competition distance, within about four months. She uses her leg to raise the bow, her shoulder and upper body to draw it, and a release mechanism to fire the arrow.
Sheetal has previously acknowledged how difficult those early days were. Speaking to the BBC, she recalled that she initially felt becoming an archer was impossible and that her legs would ache during training. Her coaches nevertheless worked on developing a technique around the strength and movement she already possessed.
From Teenager To Champion
The progress that followed was remarkably fast. Within roughly two years of discovering archery, Sheetal had won major international medals. She won gold in the individual and mixed-team compound events at the 2022 Asian Para Games, followed by a silver at the 2023 World Archery Para Championships. At the Paris 2024 Paralympics, she won mixed-team bronze.
In 2025, she went a step further by becoming the first female armless archer to win a world championship title, defeating Türkiye’s Öznur Cüre Girdi in the compound women’s individual final. She was subsequently recognised as Para Archer of the Year and established herself as the world’s leading athlete in her category.
Perfect Ten Under Pressure
Her latest achievement came on home soil in Ahmedabad. Sheetal entered the knockout stage as the top qualifier after scoring 698, improving her own Asian record by one point. In the final against Seidan, neither archer could be separated after regulation, forcing a shoot-off.
With the gold medal resting on a single arrow, Sheetal hit the X/10, the innermost section of the target. Seidan managed a 9, handing Sheetal her first individual World Archery Para Series gold. World Archery described the result as a dramatic shoot-off victory, while Sheetal’s triumph also strengthened her preparation for the upcoming Asian Para Games.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Sheetal Devi’s story is remarkable not simply because she was born without arms, but because her sporting journey began when she was already a teenager. She had never seen a bow before discovering archery, had to build a technique from scratch and faced the physical demands of learning a sport at an age when many elite athletes have already spent years competing.
Her rise also shows why sporting opportunity cannot be reserved for those who fit conventional ideas of an athlete. Talent can emerge late, and people with disabilities may need access, specialised coaching and the freedom to find the discipline in which they can excel.
Sheetal’s perfect 10 in Ahmedabad is therefore more than a winning shot. It represents years of adaptation, training and persistence and a reminder that a late beginning does not have to mean a limited future.
How can India create more opportunities for athletes who may discover their sporting potential later in life?
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